The Tale of Teonado
by TMan5636
Summary: Teonado or Teo for short was always treated badly by the other orphans, but now he is about to enter a series of events where he must go across the lands outside Mango Island alongside many Cartoon Network heroes and villains alike to stop a brand new threat that is much greater than Fuse himself. Rated T for Violence
1. Mango Island Blues

_**The Tale of Teonado**_

Chapter 1: Mango Island Blues

There is an Island with its own large town known as Mango Island, very far southeast from Europe, the island is known for a few things. First off is the many, many Mango Trees which grow there, with an unusual talent to grow Mangos no matter how harsh the weather can be, but what is also known about it is the weather, for the past 100 years, a large cloud engulfed the skies around the island, no matter how often you looked up on the island, grey clouds were the only thing one could see, no sky, no sun, no stars during the night sky either, just grey clouds which circled the island clockwise for 100 years, no one knows how this came to be

The island is like taking a step into the past, all the technology is quite primitive, there was some technology, but none were advanced like in the other countries around the world, Mango Island had old fashioned technology which looked like they came from the very early 1900s, despite this, the island was quite peaceful and never went hungry with their countless Mangos which sold to many markets around the world thanks to the weekly shipping, but despite this, the town was poor in its own way as while they had so many Mangos, they did not sell so much outside their homes, and people started to grow tired of Mangos as no other food besides Fish could be obtained with the exception of imported foods which were expensive to order, and all of the Fish were Piranhas, so Fishing was quite difficult

Our story takes place on a hillside on Mango Island, where a three storey wooden building rotted there, it was known as "Miss Hulgary's Mango Island Orphanage", the orphanage was very poor, but had its own Mango Tree Garden like every other large area of the island, but because it was poor, the Orphans were forced to work for their living by collecting the Mangos and selling them in markets around town, of course with over 20 more markets selling the same thing, selling the Mangos proved difficult

But the Mangos were not the important part of this story, our story now takes place in the highest room of this Orphanage, almost 6:00am. A large wooden empty room with nothing but a ruined mattress and a small drawer with nothing in it, on the mattress, there was a blue thin blanket which covered a small lump. The lump was a boy who had completely covered himself in the blanket to keep warm, the boy slept somewhat peacefully until a loud banging at his door occurred

"TEO! WAKE UP! ITS 6 'O' CLOCK!" The voice sounded dried out and old, the only hint the caller was Miss Hulgary, the lump moved slightly as the boy name Teo slowly lifted the blanket from over his head revealing the boy's face and his beautiful large blue eyes. He then threw the blanket off of him revealing his entire form

The boy was very small, about 6 years old to be exact, he had large brown hair which was curved and spiked, having a total of 8 large spikes around his head, 2 at the top, 2 on the middle, 2 on the bottom and 2 more which spiked at the front making a strange M shape, he also had two long hair stripes behind his ears making them look like small dreadlocks, and 2 very tiny points of hair at the top of his head, his hair had looked like it came straight from an old Japanese cartoon. Teo was also very slim, almost enough to see his ribcage and his skin was quite pale due to lack of sunshine on the island, but this was his most outstanding feature, behind the boy, forcing to make a hole in the seat of his pale yellow pyjama trousers, was a long black furry tail with a white tip at the end

His tail looked like it had came from a cat, other signs of this were his finger nails which pointed out like how a posh lady would have them, but the boy's nails were much more pointed and curved slightly, giving them the look of cat-claws, another hint was the boy's position, he had slept which curled up with his tail covering his face, much like how a cat does. This boy had many cat-like attributes, and it is very unknown how he does have these. The boy slowly sits up holding onto his white rabbit plush which was his bedtime comfort and his only friend

Sad as this is, because Teo is different for having a Cat Tail, he is actually hated among the other orphans and even Miss Hulgary, no surprise as most of the Mango Island Citizens had narrow-minds

Teo slowly stands up placing his plush rabbit on his mattress and places the blanket over it, he then made his way to the window, feeling the cold wood on his bare feet and the tip of his tail as it brushed against it until it slowly lifted up, Teo opened the curtains to see the weather, which was the same, dull grey clouds as far as the eye can see. All Teo does is place his right hand on the cracked glass feeling the cold breeze, then he removes his hand from the glass thinking of the one desire he's had for as long as he could remember. _"One day… I'll see what's past those clouds"_ he thought to himself

* * *

It was breakfast time, the fully dressed Teo was at his seat, which was at a lone table farthest from the other tables and the other orphan's. Teo's clothes consisted of a plain red t-shirt and blue trousers with black slip-on shoes but no socks, his shirt and trousers were quite ripped in places due to bullying and lack of methods to repair old clothing, not that this bothered Teo too much as the other orphans had the same problems with their clothes

On Teo's plate were two Mangos chopped up into cubes, which was the same meal he had for breakfast, lunch and dinner for his entire life, the orphanage couldn't afford fish or imported food from other countries, so Teo was stuck with Mangos. Teo simply stuck his claw into a Mango cube like a fork and ate it in almost one bite, as the cubes were almost bite-size, he did this method for the rest of the cubes, Teo of course did this quickly so to leave as soon as he can, because they had little time before it was time to do their tiring chores

As Teo finished his breakfast, he picked up his plate and walked slowly towards the table with the dishes on it, and then placed his plate on the pile of dirty plates - not looking too different from the clean plates - then he made his way outside the enjoy it somehow

* * *

Ten minutes had passed and we find Teo sitting under a dead tree, the only tree on Mango Island which produced no fruit or leaves, most Mango Islanders consider this their main tourist attraction, Teo just simply calls it his 'Lonely Tree', it was his favourite tree actually, because it was the only tree that was different from the others, much like how Teo is different from every other human on Mango Island

Teo quickly noticed a blue ball rolling slowly his way and stopped near his feet, he then saw a kid walking his way to pick it up while keeping his distance from Teo, the kid then walked quickly away once he picked up the ball, Teo just sighs, knowing how much the other orphans hated and feared him, in fact most bad things were blamed on Teo despite not ever doing a thing or ever moving

Soon Teo noticed another kid walking towards him, but this one Teo knew too much, and at the same time, hated and feared him also. This kid was 8 years old, he was quite fat, was bucktoothed and a few freckles between his green eyes, he wore a black shirt with a yellow collar, yellow sleeve rims and three yellow spikes patterned on the front of his shirt and dark blue trousers with black shoes but no socks as well. The sight of this kid made Teo very nervous. Because this kid was Teo's biggest bully and the one who sparked the Island's bigger hatred for Teo, this kid was named Mike Diego, the 'Rooster' of the orphans as he calls himself. Teo knew one thing, staying close to Mike meant trouble, so Teo slowly stood up

"What do you think your doing freak?" Mike said aggressively, "Freaks like you have no right to stand up in front of normal people like me!" Teo was silent as he slowly made a step to the side readying to walk away. "What's the matter freak? Too stupid to talk today or what?"

"N-no I-"

Mike interrupted, "Then what? Oh I get it, you finally realised that freaks like you have no right to talk!" he said with a smug tone.

Teo just sighs as he began to slowly walk away, that was until Mike quickly grabbed Teo's tail causing him to yelp slightly at the pain

"Don't you walk away from me!" Mike shouted "What, you think because you're a freak means you get to walk away while people are still talking to you! You have no right to do anything superior to us normal people"

Teo was silent, but he slowly turned around revealing something new in his eyes, his pupils became cat like and looked very angry, Mike gets nervous remembering about Teo's strange mood-swing when his tail is grabbed. Teo then quickly bolts up towards the dead tree and climbed up it using his claws to climb easily, just causing Mike to let go out of surprise. Teo hung onto the top branch, which was almost as high as the second floor of the orphanage, the branch was no stranger to Teo, as he always climbed up that branch to avoid Mike or any other bullies, this particular branch had several claw marks on them where Teo held a tight grip on it. Mike just looks up at Teo annoyed as he picks up a rock and throws it towards Teo, only to have it miss him and fly over the orphanage gate

"Freak!" Mike shouted and then slowly walks away, but Teo remained on the branch for a long time now, he sighs at this, every day it was the same thing no matter what, to Teo, the days and years meant nothing to him. He just simply places his arms around the branch and lied down to try and get comfy, knowing he'll have to stay up here for a while

* * *

It was chore time. These chores involved a complete clean up of the entire orphanage such as cleaning, dusting, scrubbing, polishing and so many more, but some of the 'lucky' kids were allowed to pick Mangos and go into town to sell them, this was the closest they had to freedom. We find Teo and all the orphans in the hallway, the orphans next to him kept a distance away from Teo giving him arm room unlike the others who were almost crammed together, the only reason was the orphans didn't want to come near Teo which is why he has this space. The one and only Miss Hulgary walked to the middle holding a bowler hat, she was an early 60's woman wearing a nun outfit, her face was really wrinkled and she had a long nose, she always had an uncaring grouchy look on her face, which pretty much summed up how she did her work here

Inside the hat she was holding, was a list of names, she would pick out four names to pick and sell the Mangos in town where as everyone else would clean the orphanage. "Alright kids." she said "Its chore time. The names I pick out will be the ones to sell the Mango's in town, and you better make a profit!"

With that, Miss Hulgary dug her wrinkled fingers into the bag and took out four names on paper with just her two fingers, she then opens them after placing the hat on a nearby desk. "The names are… Samantha Tantha, Mike Diego, Jack Davis and Teo. Right, you four go out and get picking"

Just then, Mike quickly stepped forward looking mad. "Hold it! Why does the freak get the good job? That freak doesn't deserve it!"

"I don't care!" Hulgary replied "Just get going!"

"I will once you replace Teo with someone who does deserve the good job!" Mike spoke back

Miss Hulgary quickly raised her hand causing Mike to flinch, Teo just shudders feeling his left cheek where Miss Hulgary had struck many times in the past, but he alone wasn't a victim of this harsh punishment luckily. He knew this though, Miss Hulgary was not trying to support Teo, she just hated it when kids spoke back to her

"F-fine!" said mike trying to sound tough but with a trace of fear in his tone "The freak joins in too, I suppose we can use him as some sort of freak show to entertain the crowd"

Teo felt relieved he didn't have to do chores, but Mango selling wasn't easy either, and he didn't like the idea of working with the three kids he liked the least, especially Mike

* * *

In the back garden, hundreds of Mango Trees lived there making a small forest, everyone had gotten lost here at least once, except for Teo. He could climb trees with ease, so he could easily climb to the top to see where to go. And once again, his tree climbing skills came in handy, because while normal kids had to use ladders to climb up to grab the Mangos, or use sticks to poke them down, Teo could climb the trees and grab the Mangos, whilst Teo was very shy and timid, he was never afraid to use his Cat-Like Abilities to help him in situations other kids had trouble with

We find Teo in the tree tops dropping Mangos into the barrels and baskets below, he was able to fill them in record time since he could jump from tree to tree to get the Mangos without having to come down to climb another, Teo always felt a bit excited using his Cat Abilities to burn some of his stored energy. Once the barrels and baskets were filled, Teo slowly climbed down seeing the three kids, Mike, Jack and Samantha

Jack was a black skinned grey haired 8-year old boy who was a friend of Mike. He was very thin and wore a white polo shirt with a black tie, a brown belt which held up his light blue trousers and reddish brown shoes, Jake always followed Mike's orders like some sort of servant, Teo felt it was understandable since every leader needs a right-hand man, or what he's heard. Samantha was a 8-year-old fat girl with long blonde hair in the style of two ponytails at the side and two strange rosy cheeks, she wore a blue vest with three purple stripes on it, two vertical while one horizontal and had a dark blue skirt with red shoes, she wasn't very bright and has a very big appetite, this was proven as Samantha quickly ate one of the Mangos in a Basket without anyone looking except Teo, who just simply ignored it

"Took you long enough freak!" said Mike, Teo could argue, he had filled the baskets and barrels alone in just under two minutes, which would've normally taken half an hour if all four of them used the ladders and sticks, but Teo was too shy to argue, especially since arguing with Mike would've sparked his very short temper

"I'd have to agree." said Jack, simply trying to get in good with Mike, "You always take so long, but at least you took care of the Mango's yourself instead of having Mike do all the hard work as always. A thanks would be in order"

"But freaks don't deserve a thanks" said Mike

"Seems pretty strange how the law says that freaks don't deserve rights" said Samantha as she grabbed and ate another Mango, "But it's the law and we must obey it." Teo just kept quiet as he picked up two of the baskets, 'face palming' in his own mind at Samantha's lack of common knowledge. "Don't worry Teo, I'm sure that law will pass someday, but I really don't understand why you wanted to be a freak in the first place"

Teo simply sighed at Samantha, whilst she was the least mean to Teo, he simply cannot stand Samantha's annoyance which makes up for the lack of bullying, he was about to argue until Mike spoke out loud. "The freak is just stupid, that's why. Now come on already, we don't have time to argue with the freak here. Lets go"

With that, Mike and Jack placed the barrels onto a large cart and tied the cart to Teo's tail without even letting him say anything, Mike then picked up the smallest basket whereas Jack and Samantha picked up two baskets each, leaving one basket left, Mike could simply use his spare hand to pick it up, but he chose to put the last basket into the cart increasing the weight capacity for little Teo to pull

Mike, Jack and Samantha then began to walk towards the gate entrance to outside the orphanage with Teo lagging behind because of the extra weight, but luckily, Teo's tail was incredibly strong and pulling the cart was pretty much child's play, but it wasn't exactly lightweight to carry, so Teo did have a bit of a hard time catching up

* * *

An hour later, the four kids were at their usual area in the crossroads of town, they had a small table where it had a sign saying "Miss Hulgary's Mango Island Orphanage's Best Mangos of All Time" Teo knew that type of advertisement wouldn't work, since this isn't the first time Teo has tried to sell Mangos before, he knew short catchy names would work better. But of course, arguing with Mike was a bad idea, especially since he believes everything he thinks of is perfect, also the fact that Teo couldn't read or write so he couldn't make a better sign

Teo was just sitting on the hard floor resting his exhausted tail, looking at the other three kids who sat on small stools, a fourth stool for Teo did exist, but Mike used that stool for a basket of Mangos, despite the table having room for one more basket or it could go on the ground with two more baskets. Mike simply done it to give Teo a hard time. Teo just simply sighed at he looked at his ruffled up tail, so he slowly combs it back in place with his hands until it looked nice and smooth again

Ten minutes had passed and quite a few people walked by, but none barely batted an eye to them, some looked at their sign but then walked off, but that was it. This was no surprise, considering there are over 20 more shops that sell the same thing which was either cheaper, more convenient or had nicer salespeople, they were lucky to have sold just one Mango. Jack then slowly peers at his watch "One hour and 50 minutes to go"

"This is getting ridiculous!" said Mike, "I bet its Teo's fault no one is coming! His freakish looks do scare people off"

Teo was just silent, he slowly turned his head to see the three kids, only to realise Samantha was gone, "Where's Samantha?"

Mike and Jack looked baffled as they looked around for her, "For a big girl she does disappear often" said Jack

"Here I am" The kids looked to their right to see Samantha eating a Mango as she walked back to them. "Sorry I left, I was hungry so I went to pick up a Mango at that shop across the street"

Everyone looked at Samantha with a confused and annoyed look, even Teo who normally kept a shy expression

"We have Mangos RIGHT HERE!" said Jack

"And they're FREE! We own them so we don't have to pay for them!" said Mike

"Why did you make the effort to walk up to another shop to pay for a Mango when you just needed to reach your arm out where you sat to get a free Mango?" asked Teo with an annoyed tone

"I agree with Teo! Ours are exactly the same" said Jack

"Because their shop has a great catchy new slogan called 'Mama Mamba's Mumbo Mangos'" said Samantha. Everyone just slowly 'Face Palmed' at Samantha's stupidity, except for Mike who went as far as to 'Face Desk' at her stupidity "Come on, 'Mama Manba's Mumbo Mangos' is such a cool catchy name

"My title… 'Miss Hulgary's Mango Island Orphanage's Best Mangos of All Time' is much better, it shows cold hard facts on our Mangos" said Mike

"Everyone's Mangos taste the same" Teo muttered to himself, Mike stood up readying to punch Teo as he quickly flinches, that was until a voice got their attention

"'Miss Hulgary's Mango Island Orphanage's Best Mangos of All Time?' That's the stupidest name I've ever heard"

Mike turned around readying to punch whoever said it, "Oh yeah! I-"

Mike grew surprised as to who said it and lowered his fists, Teo then stood up to see who it was

It was a 7-year old slim girl with long red hair and red eyes to match and a set of very small fangs. She wore an orange vest with a green back with a black chocker around her neck which had a small diamond on it, the vest also had one large stripe which had a yellow and green diamond pattern, she wore thick black bracelets and a belt to match, she also had green trousers with orange shoes which also had thick black ankle bracelets

This girl was very different from all of the other citizens on Mango Island. A Bully of a girl who is the daughter of the head of a very dangerous Mafia Group, this girl, was Bowla Mervaradi. Mike and Teo had a strong crush on her, and whilst Teo was very shy, Bowla already knew his feelings for her

"Well if it isn't Bowla" said Mike looking smug, "Came here to buy a Mango, or were you thinking of me?" Mike began to flex his fat arm trying to look tough, but Bowla simply pushed Mike away as she slowly walked up to the nervous Teo

"In your dreams Bucky" Bowla replied "I came to see my favourite little wimp" Teo began to blush slightly as Bowla smirked at him

"S-so… how are you today?" asked Teo shyly

"Just great!" Bowla replied in a gloating tone "But that's expected since I've got a daddy who gives me whatever I want"

"And a large boat to take you off the Island" said Jack

"And you get so many Sweets, Cakes and Candy from wherever you go!" said Samantha

"Yep, but I wasn't talking to you two losers" said Bowla as she glared at the two forcing them to step back.

Mike then stepped forward looking angry "I swear, something must be wrong with you if you like that stupid freak"

"Buzz off Bucky!" said Bowla "Why not teach your dog Jack some new tricks?"

Mike and Jack quietly growled at Bowla. "Some day you'll come to your senses, and realize a real stud when you see one, then you'll dump that freak for me" said Mike

"If I did see a real stud I'd still stay with Teo." said Bowla making Teo blush "I always preferred a wimp like him, they're so much fun to mess with" she then flicked Teo's nose making him flinch

"So um… you said our sign was stupid right?" asked Teo

"Yep." Bowla replied "You didn't write that did you? Oh wait! Of course not, you don't know how to read or write" Teo felt a little offended, but this was common from Bowla to insult or tease him

"Wait hang on!" Samantha said "You go a lot of places right, did you bring any goods with you?"

Bowla faced Samantha looking angry, making her nervous. "First off don't interrupt me when I'm talking to Teo, second you get goods sent to you every month, and if you weren't such a fat greedy pig who eats them all in seconds, maybe you'd still have some right now, and last but not least, even if I did have any… sure as heck I wouldn't share them with you! Now why not stuff your big fat mouth with those mangos and SHUT UP!"

Samantha actually looked hurt from Bowla's harsh tone, so she just stepped back slightly as Mike smirked, loving Bowla's tone. Bowla then faces Teo again "Anyway, your probably not getting any sales while you have a stupid name for your little shop"

"I…. I know" said Teo "But we are the cheapest… just 2p each"

"Yeah, but with a dumb name like what Bucky put down, your never gonna sell… so humour me… what would you call it?" asked Bowla

"Me? well…"

"Your just wasting your breath Bowla" interrupted Mike "That freak can't think for himself!"

"Shut up Bucky. Or I'll burn you!" shouted Bowla

Teo knew what Bowla meant by that, its no secret that Bowla has a hidden talent too, much like Teo. Bowla can breathe fire like a dragon, no one knows how she got that power, much like no ones knows why Teo has a tail. Soon Teo began to think hard for Bowla, soon he got an idea but felt a bit nervous

"Um…" Bowla faced Teo again as he was ready to speak "I uh… how about… Mike's Marvellous Mangos?"

Everyone was quite surprised at Teo's suggestion, even Mike was, Bowla then just glared at Teo annoyingly "Why Mike?" asked Bowla

"Because… well… Mike is the Rooster of the orphans, so he's the leader… and his name starts with 'M' like Mangos… and its short so people won't take too much time reading the name" said Teo

"Your too nice for your own good" said Bowla after about a few seconds of awkward silence. Teo just remained quiet feeling a bit bad for himself. Soon then, Bowla takes a Mango from the table and places a 2p coin in Teo's hands. Then she took a quick bite out of the Mango. "So what are you going to do tonight"

"W-why do you ask?" said Teo

"I dunno" said Bowla "I'm thinking of coming over to that old bat's orphanage to see you"

"R-really?" asked Teo looking nervous

"Sure, we've been together for 2 years right, surely I'm allowed to come over" said Bowla

"Well…" Teo was silent

"Sounds like the freak doesn't want you over!" said Mike "So why do ya like him?"

"I… no its, I'd love to let you come round Bowla" said Teo sounding a bit panicked "But I don't think Miss Hulgary would let you"

"That old bat will let me if she knows what's good for her" said Bowla "My daddy isn't afraid to kill anyone for my sake"

"O-oh" said Teo "So… I'll see you later then?"

"At 7:00" said Bowla, "Wait for me by the gates. If you can't find a clock, at least guess by how dark it is by the window of your room" Teo just silently nods as he began to blush again whereas Mike got furious, he was about to yell again but Bowla faced Mike scaring him. Then Bowla just simply points her finger to him "You know, Teo is way too nice to you. Think about that"

With that, Bowla walks off continuing to eat her bought Mango. Teo just looks at the 2p coin in his hand, then he just places it on the desk near Mike who takes it angrily, Teo knew Mike was expecting him to give it to him since he claims to be in charge of all their money

"Mike's Marvellous Mangos?" muttered Jack "You know I reckon we should go with it"

"Like I'm gonna take suggestions from the freak" Mike shouted

"Mike's Marvellous Mangos is SO much better than that silly long on you wrote down." said Samantha "I say go for it, I'm sure Teo won't mind"

Teo was silent, but he quietly mutters 'no' under his breath, implying he doesn't mind it being used

"Oh fine." said Mike sounding annoyed "But between us four. I came up with the name, not the freak here"

"Of course!" said Jack "Its better if everyone believed you thought of it and not Teo"

"But I thought Teo came up with it" said Samantha confused "Did you tell him earlier?" she asked Teo who just slowly places his head on the desk and quietly groans at Samantha

* * *

The long two hours had finally passed and the kids made their way back to the orphanage, in Miss Hulgary's office, Mike placed down ten 2ps, which was all the profit they made "You only sold ten Mangos?" Miss Hulgary asked in a very annoyed tone

"We managed to make a better profit thanks to the excellent catchy name I thought of for our desk… 'Mike's Marvellous Mangos'" Mike said looking quite smug

"I'd say we were quite successful despite the small profit" said Jack

"Well it's the most we've had so far." said Miss Hulgary calming down a bit "Good work Mike"

"Thank you." said Mike "And for the record, Teo didn't do anything to help at all"

"That doesn't matter." said Hulgary "Only one of you had to do the selling"

"Yeah, but he never carried a single barrel or basket like the lazy selfish freak he is!" said Mike. Miss Hulgary just simply crossed her arms, which made him nervous "I… so yeah… b-big time punishment for him… well see ya!" said Mike and then he quickly dashed out of the room violently pushing Teo to the ground smacking his head on a metal filing cabinet. Jack ran out to follow Mike and Samantha just waltzes out. Teo slowly got up wiping the dust off him, she then looked at Miss Hulgary looking as if he wanted to say something

"Yes Teo?" asked Miss Hulgary

"N-nothing" he said. Teo could've told Miss Hulgary the truth, but he knew she didn't care at all, and Mike would eventually find out and he would hurt him again, so Teo slowly walked out of the door, leaving Miss Hulgary on her own who just looked out the window seeing the thick grey clouds that covered their island

As Teo was making his way back into his room, he saw Mike at the end of the hallway looking mad at him with his arms crossed, "You should've gotten into trouble freak! Its only natural!" said Mike looking very annoyed. Teo was silent, he knew arguing was bad, so he just went into his room ignoring Mike, who just sighs in an irritated tone. _"How did that freak get in the good books of the Mervaradi Family? … especially that babe Bowla? They must be insane or something to like him" _he thought to himself

* * *

Many hours had passed and Teo spent the entire time in his own room where he is safe, he felt somewhat excited but nervous for Bowla coming over. He was lying on his mattress looking at his rabbit plush which just looked at him back, Teo then eventually kneeled up and picked up his rabbit and began to cuddle it

"Bowla will be coming over soon Baby Bunny?" he said "I'm sure Bowla won't mind me bringing you along!"

The rabbit plush just looked at Teo right back with no sound whatsoever, natural thing for a toy to do. But to Teo it was his best friend. Teo just nodded accepting that the toy agreed with him, he then looked outside seeing the sun was setting. He knew now would be a good time to head outside and wait for Bowla to come, so he places his rabbit plush down until he placed his shoes back on which sat next to his mattress. After Teo puts his shoes on, he picks up his rabbit plush and makes his way to the door, but just before Teo could touch the handle

*CLICK*

This sound was very unfamiliar to Teo, it caused him to hesitate a little when opening the door, but he then turned the handle and tried to push the door open. But to his shock, it won't open, the scared and confused Teo now began to push the door open harder, even using his two hands causing him to use his tail to hold his rabbit plush. Soon he began to knock at the door

"Miss Hulgary!" shouted Teo "My door's stuck!"

"Its not stuck you stupid freak! Its locked!"

"M-Mike?" asked Teo feeling scared

On the other side, Mike was leaning beside Teo's door next to an exhausted Jack who had just installed a lock mechanism on Teo's door "To think it took us this long to remove one of the bathroom locks and put it on Teo's door." said Jack "None the less this should secure him until someone unlocks it from the other side"

"Good job!" said Mike "That old bat should've done that when the freak came here"

"But why Mike?" shouted Teo, almost on the verge of crying "Why did you lock me in?"

"What else freak!" said Mike "You don't deserve to see Bowla, only a handsome stud like myself deserves to see Bowla. So I'm making things right here, now you just stay there like a good little freak and let me become Bowla's new boyfriend"

With that, Mike and Jack walked away leaving Teo to bang against his door constantly shouting and protesting. Teo then slowly stopped to walk back a bit, then he rammed the door with his entire body, only causing him to fall back hurting himself against the door and floor. Teo leaned up with tears in his eyes from the pain, but the worst part is knowing he might lose Bowla to Mike

"I…I…" was all Teo said before he began to shed more tears. Soon though, Teo felt a new emotion, one he has never felt before, this one felt good, but it felt bad at the same time. This new emotion… was rage

Teo began to use his rage to his advantage and he began to recklessly smash himself into his door while growling like some wild animal, but that was starting to fail even more, so Teo began to use his claws to scratch at the door, which actually caused 1cm deep cuts into the door. But despite all his ramming and clawing, he just wasn't strong enough to move or destroy the door, and he just collapsed with exhaustion, losing his rage, and he began to shed tears once more, knowing he could lose Bowla to the bully he hates the most

Outside. We find Mike and Jack waiting at the entrance for Bowla, Mike was chuckling to himself about how he locked Teo away, whereas Jack was silent as usual. "I wish I saw the look on the freak's face, I bet he's crying now… he deserves it for being a freak!" Mike gloated to himself

"Most definitely." Jack agreed "But I have my doubts about Bowla." Mike raises an eyebrow to Jack in confusion, "I doubt she will agree to stay with you Mike, after all the times she has been cruel to you and nice to Teo"

"But with Teo out of the way! She'll no doubt find me more attractive since Teo's not here to distract her from my good looks! But don't mention we locked him away otherwise we'll get burnt" said Mike

Jack just simply shrugged his shoulders, he had his doubts Mike's idea would work, but he was never one to complain, at that point Samantha walked in with two Mangos in her hands, eating both of them "Hiya guys! Enjoying the night?" said Samantha

"Indeed." said Jack "And I see your enjoying the 'fruits of our labour'" Jack simply chuckled quietly to himself at his joke whereas Mike and Samantha didn't get it, "It's a somewhat intellectual joke." he soon sighs, another one of his jokes wasted

"Now where's that babe Bowla? She should be here soon" said Mike as he crossed his arms, taking a peek at the top window where Teo's room is

At that point, Bowla soon arrived to the gates, that's where she saw Mike and Jack walk up to her, Samantha soon followed but kept a safe distance

"Why hello there Bowla, looking more lovely than ever" said Mike

"Why are you here Bucky? And Where's Teo?" said Bowla, getting straight to the point

"Oh, he said he didn't want to see you anymore" said Mike quickly, Jack just panned to Mike looking shocked and he then took ten large steps backwards knowing this will not end well "Yeah! He said he was getting tired of you bullying him so he said I could hang out with you instead"

Bowla simply had her arms crossed glaring at Mike who had a big grin the entire time, trying to hide his fear "Do you honestly think I'm going to fall for that?" said Bowla "Next thing your going to tell me that he's gotten onto a Unicorn and flew off into the land of Make-Believe"

"Teo did THAT?" asked Samantha in total shock "I thought you said Unicorns didn't exist!"

"Ok first off, Samantha, shut up!" said Bowla "Second, Mike, go get Teo before I RIP YOUR ARMS OFF AND SHOVE THEM DOWN YOUR THROAT!" she shouted with a trace of fire coming from inside her mouth, Bowla then - surprisingly enough - shot out a small stream of fire from her mouth onto the ground Mike was standing, he quickly jumped out of the way and ran towards the orphanage to get Teo looking extremely scared

"Like I said… doubts" mumbled Jack

* * *

Teo was lying on his mattress looking very upset, the thought of losing Bowla to Mike made him both sad and angry. In a state of frustration, he slams his arms on the floor, but to his surprise one of the floorboards he hit swung open, it wasn't nailed to the ground at all. He grew curious, so he got up, picked up his stuffed rabbit and walked to the floorboard and lifted it up, there was another floor, with a piece of paper with writing on it

Being very small and slim, Teo managed to slip himself into the opening, there was an entire area under his floorboards, he then gets into his knees to fit in the area and he picked up the paper, he tried to read it but couldn't, he knew it was in English but he doesn't know how to read, so he just puts it in his pocket and began to look around. The entire area was dark and covered in dust and cobwebs, Teo felt nervous crawling around in here, but at the same time, he kinda liked the feeling of crawling around somewhere dark as well, he simply assumed it involved his cat-like nature. So Teo peeks out of the opening, takes the floorboard and places it over him hiding the opening and began to crawl around the place with his rabbit on his back, seeing what mystery this place had, giving off a slight chuckle at the excitement of exploring.

At that point, Mike entered Teo's room, only to become shocked he was gone. "W-where did that freak go? Is he invisible?"

To be continued


	2. The Invasion

_**The Tale of Teonado**_

Chapter 2: The Invasion

Teo began to crawl around the dark, the area itself reminded Teo of the hallways how they can sometimes act like a maze, he shown no signs of being afraid what-so-ever, normally he would but he wasn't because he knew this, nothing down here can be as bad as Mike. Teo looked behind him to see his stuffed rabbit was still on his back, glad about this, he continued.

Soon Teo stopped to see that there was a pit in front of him, but instead of turning around, he wiggled to make his stuffed rabbit fall off next to him, picked up his rabbit by biting onto the scruff of its neck - like how a cat would pick up its young - and began to climb down using his claws to his advantage

* * *

Bowla was by the front door of the orphanage with Jack and Samantha, growing even more impatient as she began to pace with an irritated look on her face, Jack and Samantha grew nervous, thinking she was about to breathe fire at any time.

"Um, Bowla, can we get you a drink?" asked Jack nervously

"I'd like one too" said Samantha

"Not now" mumbled Jack

"Yeah, like I'd want to have that filtered salt-water with badly squeezed mangos you call a drink!" said Bowla "My daddy can get me expensive and tasty Fizzy Drinks from abroad! Now tell me what the heck is Mike doing up there?"

"I… I'm not sure" said Jack "It doesn't take that long to get to the top floor"

* * *

At the top floor, Mike was searching for Teo in his room in a panic, but there wasn't many places Teo could hide in, all there was, was his mattress and blanket, there was a set of drawers but it was too small for Teo to fit in, plus Mike had already checked them three times. "Where the heck is that freak?" he shouted

Teo himself continued his climbing down the pit in the hidden areas of the orphanage with his stuffed rabbit still in his mouth, soon though he reached the bottom and was now able to walk rather than crawl since this area has a higher ceiling, he has no idea how this labyrinth of dust and wood could exist in this orphanage, but Teo simply begins to hold his rabbit with his hands and continued his exploring through these strange walls, with the tip of his hair barely brushing the top, he started to feel a little more nervous as he went further and further down this strange hallway, soon wiping the cobweb off that just stuck to his shoulder, soon he began to see a strange light up ahead and soon walked faster towards it

* * *

Back outside. Bowla continued to pace looking even more impatient, soon adding a bit of a growl to her tone, Jack and Samantha looked even more scared than before. Soon Bowla looked at the door which slowly opened revealing a very nervous Mike, Bowla soon crossed her arms glaring at him

"Well?" she said aggressively

"I… I can't find him" said Mike nervously

"Do you expect me to believe that pack of lies?" shouted Bowla, her eyes glowing red as a trace of fire emitted from her mouth "Now I'm going to count to ten and if you don't get your sorry butt back in there and get Teo… I'LL FRY YOU!"

Before Bowla could even begin to count, there was a loud metallic 'clank' sounding coming from the right, the four kids immediately looked to see an air vent near the bushes had become bent like something hit it, soon it bent even more as another metallic clank sound occurred. And suddenly, the entire vent bars shot off the wall as a black furry object with a white tip thrusts forward. To their surprise, out came Teo covered in cobwebs and dust who crawled onto the grass with his stuffed rabbit on his back. Teo let off a few cute coughs and stood up putting his stuffed rabbit into his arms

"Teo?" asked Bowla in a shocked tone, she then ran up to the dusty boy who looked back at her with a shy look as usual

"Um… s-sorry Bowla" said Teo

"What for?" asked Bowla

"F-for not coming… to see you sooner" said Teo

"Why did you come out of the vent?" asked Bowla

"B-because… um" Teo then looked at Mike who had an angered look on his face, implying he didn't want Teo to tell her the truth or else. But Teo suddenly grew courageous and faced Bowla "Mike put a lock on my door and trapped me in my room, he said I didn't deserve to see you, and only Mike did and he said that would make things right around here" The surprised Bowla then faced Mike turning from surprised to very angry, Teo then moved behind Bowla to protect himself

"That freak is SO dead" mumbled Mike. Then he began to run away as Bowla blasted out a huge stream of fire in his direction, Mike turned a corner just barely dodging the flame and it tore apart several mango trees.

As the flames died down and Bowla was panting from putting so much force into her fire, they all saw that the now burnt mango trees were already starting to root into new trees once more, they would become fully grown and sprouting mangos in just two days

Teo slowly moved to Bowla's side once more with a very faint smile "T-thank you" he said very quietly

Bowla simply replied by tweaking his nose "No problem you little wimp" she said with a smirk. Teo knew this, while Bowla would bully him a lot, Mike was worse so Teo actually didn't mind Bowla picking on him

* * *

Later that night, Teo and Bowla sat by the Lonely Tree watching the clouds spiral over the island, they always gave off a sad depressive tone to Mango Island. But it was the only interesting thing to watch for these orphans as they have no other means of pleasure like television sets or proper toys

Teo was in deep thought over what happened recently, because he had the confidence to enter the strange underground area and speak up to Bowla about Mike, he managed to become a little happier despite knowing Mike would eventually beat him up when Bowla is gone, soon Teo remembered something and dug into his pocket to take out the note he found earlier and shown it to Bowla

"Um Bowla… you can read right? Can you read this for me please" Teo asked

Bowla slowly took the note and looked at it, "Dang there's a lot on here" mumbled Bowla

"Is… is that what it says?" asked Teo

"No dummy" said Bowla with a slight humorous tone to her voice "listen carefully, because I'm only reading it once. It says…" Bowla then cleared her throat

_"To those who found this note, I pray you are of kind heart, for this message will contain the whereabouts of my most sacred treasure. My name is Nekatt, one of the 13 Zodian Guardians of the sacred Wish Stars. I grew up in this orphanage all my life ever since my parents died, never leaving this island nor this very orphanage, all because of my appearances. As I grew older, my will power grew weaker and my ambition to live withered. I then grew sick, knowing my life would be cut short, I took my treasure, the Wish Star and buried it under one of the several Mango Trees on this island, but if you are pure of heart, then leave it unless someone attempts to take the Wish Star for evil uses"_

"That's everything" said Bowla

Teo simply tilted his head to the side like a confused cat "What does all that mean?"

"I have no idea" said Bowla "I'll ask my daddy about it when I get home" Bowla then noticed a limousine coming towards the orphanage "Speak of the devil"

The limousine came to a slow stop and the driver's door opened revealing the chauffeur who slowly walked to the back doors and opened the one nearest the pathway, and out came Bowla's father Antonio Mervaradi

Antonio was a huge muscular man with a huge bushy red moustache and a red horseshoe hairstyle, he wore a blue suit with two large spikes on the shoulders and had a very intimidating glare to him. But his glare was not what made him scary, what made him scary was that he was the head of a very dangerous Mafia, who pretty much owns Mango Island and a few large towns in both England and America. The mafia boss soon entered the orphanage where he saw Teo and Bowla by the tree. Bowla immediately stood up, put the note in her pocket, grabbed Teo by his arm and took the boy to her father, though Teo looked very scared, with his hair standing up and his tail puffed up, Teo knew everything about Antonio and was too scared to see him in real life

"Hiya daddy" said Bowla

"I really don't understand why you would want to hang about in this rotten pit of an orphanage" said Antonio "I don't have any plans of putting you in one that's for sure"

"Well, its mostly because of him, this is Teo" said Bowla

Teo was hiding behind Bowla looking very scared. "Um… h-hello" he said very shyly

"This boy is the reason you've been coming here for two years now?" asked Antonio "Doesn't seem worth it, I'd prefer you to hang out with those who's not afraid to fight. It looks like this 'Teo' can't even speak properly let alone fight"

"Teo's just shy, that's all" said Bowla "But I like him that way, he's more fun to pick on and tease. And also…"

Bowla pulls Teo from behind her to show all of him, Antonio's eyes widened slightly at Teo's cat tail "A… tail?"

"Yep" said Bowla "Teo's part cat, he'll chase mice and birds, sleep on rugs, play with balls of yarn. And he's just all around an adorable little wimp"

"Um" was all Teo said, lacking the confidence to talk

"I'll think about it" said Antonio "He is indeed special just like you, but I would still prefer my daughter to be with someone who can fight or is at least confident enough to talk. Now come home Bowla, its almost time for bed"

With that, Antonio and Bowla walked away back to the limousine. As they passed the gates, Teo immediately looked to the left to see Mike glaring at him from behind a tree far away, looking like he was ready to attack Teo once Bowla was out of sight. But Teo immediately knew this was going to happen so he immediately climbed up the Lonely Tree and sat onto the same branch he always climbs on.

As the limousine drove off, Mike and Jack arrived to the Lonely Tree and began to pick up and throw rocks at Teo, he just ducked down feeling scared as the rocks flew over him, some barely scratching his arms and legs but none actually making a proper impact

Meanwhile, off in the distance, two strange shaped silhouettes were spying on the orphanage behind a bunch of bushes with binoculars

"So this is the place huh?"

"Looks like it, the boss did say one of the Wish Stars is on this miserable rock of an island"

"Should we go get it?"

"Not yet, the boss said to inform him first"

"Not sure why, this place has no super guys as far as I can see"

"Orders are orders. Besides, there might be some just in disguise"

Soon the silhouettes ducked back down into the bushes and moved on

* * *

At the Mervaradi mansion, we find Bowla in a pair of green pyjamas in the kitchen getting her drink of milk before bed, she noticed her father Antonio looking at a wall with his little toys on it, most families would have kitchen utensils or knives on their kitchen walls but their family has a huge set of guns big and small, from pistols to rifles and even a big bazooka at the bottom, being a mafia family had it strange perks, Bowla then walks up to her father who turns to see her

"Daddy, I found this note back in the orphanage" Bowla shows the note she held in her hand the entire time and her father takes it to read it "I know you've been on this island for years so I think you might know what it means"

Antonio was silent as he continued to read, but then he puts it in his back pocket "Just a bunch of gibberish, probably some prank by those orphans."

"Are you sure?" asked Bowla

"I'm quite sure" answered Antonio "I've never heard of any Nekatt or Wish Star and I've lived here for at least 30 years. Now head to bed darling, you've got your tutoring tomorrow"

"Ok daddy" said Bowla and she walked out of the kitchen after finishing her milk

Soon a woman entered the kitchen, she had white hair which curled at the front, back and sides, she wore a black dress with a fluffy red collar and a red and yellow broach, her dress also had red frills at the bottom and had long grey gloves, giving her the look of a gothic princess. This woman was Gabrielle Mervaradi, Bowla's mother and Antonio's wife

"Surely your not hiding things from us are you?" asked Gabriele with a cold emotionless tone

"Nothing that concerns you or Bowla. Trust me, that note she got is just made up crap" said Antonio

"I hope you are right" said Gabriele

* * *

The next day, we find Teo sleeping in his room under his blanket once again, hugging onto his stuffed rabbit. But he soon woke up feeling something wasn't right

Slowly he sat up rubbing his eyes and began to look around, this felt like this would've been the time when Miss Hulgary would bang on his door loudly saying the time, but there was no sound. Teo got a sudden chill down his spine, thinking something wasn't right, so he immediately got into his usual clothing, picked up his stuffed rabbit and slowly walked towards his window. He opened the window to peek out and he looked to his right side where the front gates were, and he saw something that greatly surprised him

He couldn't see all of it, but he noticed that there were a lot of the orphans out front facing the gates, and with strange colourful people facing them. Teo immediately knew these colourful people could mean trouble, so he closed his window and went to the centre of his room where he opened the floorboard to the secret area and went down it closing the floorboard once more. Teo placed his stuffed rabbit on his back and began to crawl through the secret area once more

Outside, Miss Hulgary and every orphan besides Teo were facing a bunch of people dressed up as clowns, each holding curved swords and big silly looking pistols and had demonic looks on their faces. But two clowns behind them were the most different

The one on the right was tall and quite fat, he wore a full body orange outfit with yellow stripes on his legs and torso, orange and red curved shoes, big white gloves with spiky yellow sleeve collars and yellow on the forearms of his outfit each with two big yellow spots above them and a yellow triangular collar, his face was completely white with big red lips, a big red nose and red make-up under his eyes and big black eyebrows with pointy ears, and he wore a big orange hat with two big points looking like a typical jester's hat, it had yellow stars and yellow diamonds on the tip of each point and a yellow spiky rim for the hat

The one on the left was shorter and had a big ball for a body with thin arms and legs with a big round head, looking the least human of any of the clowns. His full body outfit was dark blue with a purple zigzag across the middle with white spots around the centre and a purple triangle pointing downwards at the neck where it met a big white frilly thing around his neck like what Victorians wore, his entire body had the appearance of a giant circus ball. He wore big white gloves with purple spike patterns on the forearms of his outfit and even on the forelegs, he too had big blue curved shoes like his orange counterpart. His face was pale blue with a dark blue eye-mask, a big red nose and lips and a big thick black moustache looking like two big hooks pointing upwards and a blue jester hat with only one point, a white rim a purple star on it and a purple circle on the tip of the hat and had a strange metallic object representing two big barrels on his back

Both of these strange clown like beings were the most intimidating as they stood side by side facing Miss Hulgary and the orphans

"Who… are you?" asked Miss Hulgary with an annoyed yet scared tone in her voice "And why have to forced us to come out here?"

"Just keep quiet" said the orange clown "We just want information, but our boss will be doing the asking as soon as he arrives"

There was a strong silence soon afterwards, Mike, Jack and Samantha were all next to each other in the 2nd of 3 rows. Mike just quietly growls "I bet this is all that freaks fault" he mumbled "He always brought trouble to this island, this island would've been perfect and prosperous if he wasn't here"

Jack and Samantha kept quiet, Jack was concerned though, this island has had hard times hundreds of years before Teo even arrived. At the back, Teo had just crawled out of the open vent and hid into the bushes next to him to look at what's going on

Suddenly, a new clown arrived making all the smaller ones form a line side by side like soldiers or knights welcoming their leader, this new clown walked in between them with the big orange and blue ones on each side behind the smaller clowns. This new clown had the body of a slim adult, making him the most human looking, he wore a puffy red body outfit with a yellow fur belt and yellow rims on the legs and arms, red curved shoes and had a big yellow star on the chest of his outfit and a big yellow collar with two large shoulder spikes just above his shoulders where yellow marks were, he had small tight white gloves and a white mask which covered the top part of his face leaving his nose and mouth exposed with eye and ear holes on the white mask, finally he had a big red jester hat with two large points that stop at his elbows, each side had yellow stars on it with yellow stars hanging on the points of his hat and a yellow rim on it. What made him unique was that he didn't have any make-up on, nor a big red nose like the other clowns

This red clown like being simply gave a slight bow with his right hand on his chest. "Why hello there, fine weather we are having is it not?" he spoke in a posh well mannered like tone, but that only made him more intimidating

"J-just who are you? And what do you want with us" asked Miss Hulgary

"I suppose formalities are important, even to the simple folk of your little island" said the red clown "I am the supreme leader of our tribe known as the Jestons… I am known as the Jester Lord"

"_Jestons? Jester Lord? What are they exactly?" _thought Teo

"And you see, I'm on a little scavenger hunt, and my list has 13 items on it and one of them is on your little island" said the Jester Lord

"Your only gonna find Mangos here" said Miss Hulgary "Mangos and Piranhas"

"That is true, Mango Island is quite limited" said the Jester Lord "But my men claimed to have found this very special item in this very orphanage. Does the name 'Wish Star' ring any bells?"

Teo's eyes widened in shock, he knew exactly what they were after, and he knew he had to find it and make sure they don't get it. But he looked around, the note claimed it was hidden under a Mango Tree, but there were literally thousands on this island. But it soon came to him, and he looked at his Lonely Tree

"What are you talking about?" asked Miss Hulgary "There's no such thing on this island!"

"Well I had a feeling a senile old bat like you wouldn't know" said the Jester Lord. He then crossed his arms and clenched his hands, then in an instant, daggers appeared in between each of his fingers and thumbs making a total of four in each hand, Miss Hulgary and the orphans stepped back in shock "So how's about we search your Orphanage and your gardens until we find it?" he asked "If not, then your Orphanage will be 8 kids short if you catch my drift"

Soon the Jester Lord turned to his right as he heard a quiet noise, he looked to see Teo digging near the Lonely Tree with his stuffed rabbit hanging from his mouth _"Maybe under this tree, that's what might make it so special"_

"Now how did a child get over there? I'm certain none of them could sneak over there" asked the Jester Lord

"Actually, he wasn't with the others when I did a head-count" said the big blue clown

The Jester Lord faces Miss Hulgary "I thought you were told to bring every orphan out, why is there one you missed?"

"HA! Freaks like him don't count!" shouted Mike with a slight chuckle causing Jack to freak out at Mike's sudden outburst

The Jester Lord said nothing, he then turned back to Teo noticing his tail which wagged back and forth his eyes widened slightly, but soon kept his cool. "Tell me, what is the boy's name?"

"Its… Teo" said Miss Hulgary

The Jester Lord just smirked slightly as this answer. Teo shoved his hand into the hole he had been digging and there was a 'clink' sound. Teo grew surprised and he put both his hands into the hole and began to move the dirt away, seeing something coloured orange and made of glass. Teo pulled it out revealing its true shape, surprising him, Hulgary, the orphans, the clowns, and even making the Jester Lord's eyes widen

The object was a large 5-pointed star half of Teo's height, it was orange and looked like it was made of glass and had a yellow frame and had light orange stars inside the glass. Teo looked at it with amazement whereas the Jester Lord grew a demonic smile

"_This must be the Wish Star in Nekatt's note" _thought Teo, he stood up as he took his stuffed rabbit out of his mouth and into his left hand and the Orange Wish Star under his right arm, he looked at the smiling Jester Lord and simply ran towards the gates with him watching

Before Teo could make it to the gates, one of the smaller clowns swords thrusts downwards in front of Teo causing him to stumble back in fear falling on his backside, he looked to see the Jester Lord was right next to him looking down at the tiny boy with his arms crossed. "Simply adorable…"

"What's adorable about that little freak?" asked Mike

"To think you were brave enough to attempt to take the Wish Star away from me" said the Jester Lord "But you need to know that the Wish Stars belong to me, as I am the only one worthy of its wishes, now be a good boy and hand me the Wish Star"

Teo was too scared to answer, the Jester Lord simply crouches down and grabs the Wish Star in an attempt to take it off Teo, but he held on tightly thus being lifted off the ground dropping his stuffed rabbit. Teo was lifted up high nearing the Jester Lord's face who simply smiles at him, he then grabbed Teo by the shirt collar and pulls him off the Wish Star, he then drops Teo who lands on his feet and the Jester Lord gazes at the Wish Star

"Just one down… twelve to go" said the Jester Lord

"M-Mr. Jester Lord?" said Teo looking scared

The Jester Lord looks down at Teo "Yes?"

"C-can I please… have that b-back?" asked Teo

"You really are a stupid freak aren't you?" shouted Mike "You think that stupid politeness is going to get you anywhere? But I suppose you are a freak after all!"

The Jester Lord looks at Mike smirking at his aggressive tone and then he faces Teo again "Sorry, but I want all thirteen Wish Stars to make my wishes come true. I'll probably give you it back afterwards, assuming I feel like letting you live"

Teo stood back slightly looking scared, but he then looked forward looking surprised, the Jester Lord heard a distinct metallic click sound from away, he turns around to see the mafia boss himself Antonio Mervaradi with two large small-rifle like guns in each hand as well as a belt of many pistols and even two sniper rifles on his back

"Mr. Mervaradi?" asked Teo in confusion

"Now what do we have here?" asked the Jester Lord "A gunman? A moustached menace? Or just some fool attempting to stop us?"

"You're quite literally the fools yourself clown-boy" said Antonio "The names Antonio Mervaradi, the boss of the Mervaradi Mafia and leader of this little island of mine"

"Oh I see… so the big bad leader is going to stop me huh?" asked the Jester Lord in a taunting tone "Clearly your underestimating me if you think something silly like guns are going to stop me"

Antonio was silent as he held his guns at the Jester Lord, Teo had a scared look as well as the other orphans and Hulgary, no surprise since most of them have seen Antonio kill people with these very same guns. Soon Antonio turned to Miss Hulgary quickly

"DUCK!"

Quick as lightning, Miss Hulgary and the orphans jumped to the ground as Antonio began to fire his guns in a lazing line striking every clown like creature, oddly enough they all exploded into big yellow stars and small strange wooden clown dolls were on the ground where they stood. The big orange and blue clowns immediately jumped up high to dodge the bullets, but Antonio quickly spun throwing his guns up as the bullet cartridges fell out, the two empty guns struck the jumping clowns heads knocking them down to the ground. The Jester Lord watched his two bigger minions drop to the ground holding their faces in slight pain, but he soon turned back to Antonio who had already fired a round from one of his sniper rifles

The bullet had struck the Jester Lord's arm which held the Wish Star, and his entire arm was completely torn off in a golden dust-like blast, the Jester Lord stumbled back a bit but looked like he wasn't hurt at all, a strange golden mist emitted from the stub of the Jester Lord's arm flying up to the sky, defiantly implying he wasn't human. Teo saw the Wish Star land near him with the Jester Lord's severed arm which began to slowly turn into the same gold mist

"Teo!" Antonio shouted "I have a Speedboat at the coast of the island, take the Wish Star and head straight to the nearest land!"

Teo grew shocked at Antonio's request, he was asking Teo to leave the island, something Teo had always wanted to do, but felt scared for having to do it with a vehicle he has never used, and leaving the island alone

"When you get to land… search for the one who calls himself 'Dexter: Boy Genius!' he'll help you with the Wish Stars!" once Antonio finished his speech, he began to constantly shoot the Jester Lord with his rifle making many small gold-dust blasts from his body as he continued to step further and further back with each shot and piece of body severing from him, but continued to pull a devilish smirk like it was nothing "GO TEO!" Teo immediately reacted, he grabbed the Wish Star and began to run off out of the orphanage, with everyone watching the boy run off

The Jester Lord slowly stood straight and to everyone's shock besides the clowns, he began to grow new limbs and pieces of body and clothing back through the same gold-dust, he just slowly turns to his clowns "Bombzai…" The big blue clown quickly saluted implying he was Bombzai "Go get my Wish Star back"

"Yes Jester Lord" said Bombzai, the barrels on his back began to make a whirring noise as fire came from the bottom of the barrels - implying the barrels were actually a jetpack - and Bombzai immediately flew up high and began to chase Teo. Antonio began to shoot at the Jester Lord once more until the orange clown ran in front of Antonio and made two large scythes appear from his hands preparing to fight him

* * *

Teo ran through the streets as fast as he could with the Wish Star under his left arm, he looked behind him upward to see Bombzai just above him, the blue clown began to drop big black spheres which exploded as they hit the ground, revealing to be bombs, Teo barely dodged each and every blast and continued his mad dash towards the coast, starting to enter the town, Teo tried his best to stay clear of the buildings as Bombzai's Bombs hit the roads and paths making any citizen run screaming from the explosions

"Hold still!" shouted Bombzai, Teo of course ignored this, Bombzai quickly sped up and began to lower himself to Teo's level in order to snatch the Wish Star. Teo grew scared seeing Bombzai so close but he quickly darted to the right making Bombzai fly further away from him in surprise, he quickly makes a u-turn to chase after Teo again "Clever kid!" Bombzai grumbled

Bombzai began to close in on Teo once more, but Teo being smart, he quickly ran through a small Mango Tree forest, making Bombzai manoeuvre in a panicked state not expecting Teo to enter the forest. Bombzai quickly hit a tree and got his big red nose stuck in a hole from the tree, he managed to pull it out, and then he flew up and began to throw a bunch of bombs completely igniting the forest. Teo was able to run out unharmed and was much closer to the coast thanks to the shortcut through that forest

Teo finally saw the coast and there was a small boat with a engine at the end, it was Antonio's speedboat, he immediately jumped down onto the wooden bridges and ran to the speedboat. He quickly jumped into the boat and looked at the engine, seeing a ring. Teo immediately assumed this was how to start the speedboat so he quickly grabbed the ring seeing it was attached to string, so he quickly pulled at it and let go making the engine immediately start. The speedboat shot out of the coast surprising Teo at its great speed, Teo immediately hung on with the Wish Star under a set of boards making a seat, the speedboat just flew straight forward but it was a bouncy ride due to the waves, but the scared Teo just hanged onto one of the seat while kneeling down trying to stay on the boat. "T-too fast! Too fast!" Teo constantly shouted but his voice was muffled from the speedboat's loud engine affecting his sensitive ears

Teo opened his eyes and looked up to see the angered Bombzai who began to throw more bombs into the water making the boat swerve from side to side and even jump out of the water thus scaring Teo even more. One bomb eventually struck the engine blowing it up and detaching it from the boat and it sank into the ocean, the speedboat came to a slow stop, Teo just looked up scared seeing Bombzai prepare a large bazooka he got out of nowhere, he then pointed it at Teo from afar with a loud cackling laugh, the bazooka fired showing a large yellow missile heading straight towards Teo. The scared Teo immediately knew what to do, he turned around with his hands over his head crouched down but with his tail up high

Just as the missile was about to hit Teo, his tail immediately smacked into the missile, and to Bombzai's shock, his tail deflected the missile and was going straight back to Bombzai. He quickly freaked out just before the missile struck him making a large explosion causing the boat to rock in many different directions. Teo turned back around to see Bombzai was blasted far away separating himself from his jetpack. The jetpack immediately landed on Teo's boat where the engine once was with its thrusters pointed outward, Teo grew scared as the jetpack began to whir like it was about to turn on. Knowing this was going to be fast, he quickly crawled under the seats holding onto the Wish Star preparing for the worst

The jetpack turned on and the boat blasted forward even faster than before with its old engine. The boat flew just over the water with incredible speed making huge waves at the side as the back of the boat was all that touched the water, the terrified Teo continued to hold onto the Wish Star with his eyes shut tight screaming. The boat was going so fast with absolutely no control, when it would stop and where was a complete mystery, Teo just begged for this terrifying speed would stop soon

To be continued


	3. A new world

_**The Tale of Teonado**_

Chapter 3: A new world

Bravo Beach was a beautiful tourist attraction, bright skies, golden sand and was a great place for families to go to during holidays. But one day the beach was closed due to an incident, there were police barriers everywhere as a huge crowed watched what was happening

In the waters of this very beach was a giant dinosaur like creature with several machine pieces implanted onto its scales like some robot-dino hybrid, this creature was destroying several small buildings on the beach until three lights - red, blue and green - shot over the crowd and began to buzz around the dinosaur smacking it senseless in several areas, in seconds the dinosaur dropped down and exploded revealing to be a pure machine rather than a hybrid

Through the explosion the three lights landed revealing to be three 12-year-old girls, each wearing sailor-ish uniforms, one had long orange hair, red eyes and wore a red uniform, one had short blonde hair in two small ponytails, blue eyes and a blue uniform, the last had short black hair which spiked up at the sides, green eyes and a green uniform. These three girls are known as the Powerpuff Girls, one of the best heroes in this land

The three turned to see the wreckage "This is most likely the work of Mojo Jojo" said the red girl named Blossom

"What say we have a little chat with him?" asked the green girl named Buttercup as she punches her fists together itching for a fight

The blue girl named Bubbles looked ahead to notice something "Girls look! Something's coming this way!"

On the ocean top was a large object blasting through the waters almost as fast as a missile. It shot onto the sand continuing its mad dash, Blossom was able to get a quick look before it shot past them in shock. Blossom grew surprised to see it was actually a wooden boat with jet thrusters on the end

The super fast boat shot through the sand like nothing making small sandstorms and crashed through the police barriers making the crowd move away from it just barely dodging the boat as it now drove across the road just barely scraping the concrete. The Powerpuff Girls immediately flew towards the boat as it continued its run, the girls were barely able to catch up; as Blossom got closer, she took a deep breath and breathed out an icy mist around the jet thrusters freezing it slowly causing the boat to slow down. Bubbles quickly flew in front and grabbed onto the boat from the front and began to try and stop it with her strength alone while keeping her feet firmly on the ground, once the jet thrusters were completely frozen, Buttercup grabbed the boat from the back and both Bubbles and Buttercup were able to slowly stop the boat near the edge of a road where a building was, stopping it from crashing

"That was close" Bubbles mumbled

"We've stopped a lot of things in the past, but not high speed boats" said Buttercup

Blossom looks into the boat to see something under the wooden seats, it was a black puffed up cat tail with a white tip, Bubbles and Buttercup looked into the boat too

"A… cat?" asked Blossom. She grabs onto the seats and pulls them off from their hinges to see the 'cat'. To their shock, it was actually the 6-year-old cat-kid Teo who remained cuddled up on a large orange glass star looking terrified "A-are you ok?"

Teo stopped shivering and opened his eyes and notice the boat has stopped, he slowly looked up to see the Powerpuff Girls, Teo just grew nervous once more holding onto the star tightly. He noticed Bubbles moving her hand slowly towards Teo, he began to flinch, but soon calmed down as Bubbles began to gently stroke Teo's hair, Bubbles then placed both her hands to Teo and slowly lifted him up and held him in her arms like a cradle, Teo just looked at the smiling girls with a shy look on his face

Blossom soon began to stroke Teo's hair trying to comfort him "Are you ok little guy?" Teo didn't answer, he was much too scared, that was until he looked up in absolute surprise, up in the sky was bright blue with a golden circle that was very bright

"B-blue? … B-blue clouds?" muttered Teo

The girls looked up at the sky and then faced Teo again "What clouds?" asked Buttercup "That's the sky"

"S-sky?" muttered Teo "T-that's… the sky?"

"Sure is" said Blossom "Where are you from?"

Teo was silent once more, feeling shy again, but soon he worked up the courage to speak "M-Mango Island"

"Never heard of that place" said Bubbles "Where is it?"

"I'm a bit more curious about that orange star he's got" said Buttercup pointing at the orange glass star in Teo's arms. Teo just held onto it tighter thinking the girls might take it

"I don't think he wants us to touch it, best not anyway" said Blossom "Anyway, why don't we take him to Dexter, surely he can find this Mango Island"

Teo's eyes widened at the name 'Dexter' "B-boy Genius?" he quietly muttered, the girls almost heard him as they looked at him thinking he was going to say more

"Did you say something?" asked Bubbles

Teo was just silent, as he moved his eyes away from the girls looking at the side, almost looking even more shy. "Doesn't matter" said Blossom "Lets just fly to Dexter's and see what he can do"

Teo's eyes widened at the word 'fly' soon Bubbles held onto him tighter "Hold on tight Kiddie-Cat, we'll fly slowly"

Teo then grew shocked to see the girls actually began to fly on their own without any form of machine or contraption, the girls began to fly high with Teo being held on firmly ensuring his safety several feet in the sky. As the girls flew high, Teo looked down to see several grey squared objects in squared patterns with cleaner more greyer roads separating them into sections, this looked completely different from his home on Mango Island, he then looked ahead to see the clear blue skies, something he has never seen before ever in his life, Teo began to grew less shy and more amazed at the new more exciting scenery, almost to the point where he moved one of his arms off the Wish Star and tried to reach for the orange glowing orb, Bubbles looked down at Teo and began to chuckle lightly, making Teo shy again and back to cuddling the Wish Star

Soon a building got his attention, it was larger than the others by about double height and had big glowing writing saying something - of course Teo couldn't read - at the top there was a large circle with an odd picture looking like a letter on it where the girls landed on and walked into the building. Inside the building were so many metallic objects with glowing orbs like the one in the sky

At the centre where a strange square-blue light with many white writings and pictures moved around on it, there was a 12-year-old boy with orange sleek hair, thick blue glasses and wore a long white lab-coat with black trousers and big dark blue boots. This boy was the one and only Dexter: Boy Genius; Dexter soon turned to the Powerpuff Girls after noticing them, he greets them with a smile as he used his right hand to fix his glasses whilst his left one was behind his back

"Ah, if it isn't Blossom, Bubbles and Buttercup of the Powerpuff Girls" said Dexter looking quite cheery "What brings you here so early in the morning"

"_Early in the morning? Was that scary ride that short?" _though Teo

"We found this little boy here who seems to be lost" said Blossom

Dexter noticed Teo and walked up to him and bowed down a little to see him "This little fella here huh? Loving the hair style that's for sure!" said Dexter, he then gives Teo a quick wave "Hiya, my names Dexter: Boy Genius… what's yours?"

"T-Teo" he said very quietly, soon he gulped and began to speak up "I… I-I"

"Yes?" asked Dexter "Need help finding home?"

"N-no" said Teo almost building confidence, his answer confused Dexter though until Teo held out the Wish Star he held onto tightly "M-Mr. Mervaradi said me to… ask for… y-your help… this is a-a Wish Star"

"Wish Star?" asked Dexter as he slowly took it from Teo's handed and began to examine it "So Antonio Mervaradi asked me to help you out with this huh? Guess that's his form of payment for my machines in his home?" he mumbled "Doesn't matter, I'll take a look at this immediately, if Mervaradi asked me for this then he really must need my help if he's swallowing his pride this much"

Soon Dexter walked off to another door, but before entering it, he turned to the Powerpuff Girls "I have a play room on the 30th floor if you'd like to take Teo there while I examine this 'Wish Star' I may be a while so I'll ring you"

The Powerpuff Girls nod and they all walk to a metallic door which slid open to the side surprising Teo, the girls entered a boxed area and the door closed, Blossom pressed one of several buttons on the wall and Teo soon heard a whirring sound. Within a few seconds the doors opened revealing a new area, this area was very bright and colourful with many coloured square patterns on the walls, floors and ceiling of red, yellow, green, blue, pink, orange and purple, as the girls entered the centre of the area where a rope-like gates surrounded them, Bubbles moves her free hand onto Teo's tiny feet and slipped off his shoes, she then places Teo down onto the floor, which felt quite strange to him, feeling soft like a pillow but almost with a plastic-like feel to it

Teo looked around to see a pit area with several coloured balls, a small ladder attached to what looked like a curved plastic board, a small hill like object, a bunch of yellow and orange blocks made of the same material as the floor in multiple areas that looked like they could be easily lifted, and even a small ball like the ones on Mango Island. This place was so much more colourful and happier looking than on Mango Island, Teo really felt like he wasn't home anymore, not that he cared in the slightest. But Teo wasn't sure what he was suppose to do, all he did was look around

Teo looked behind him to see the Powerpuff Girls had exited the area and closed the gate, Teo turned properly to wonder what they were going to do. Bubbles uses two smaller ropes and tied them into a knot locking the roped door to the roped gate, she then looks directly at Teo "Don't worry little guy, I'll be right behind this gate to keep an eye on you. So have fun" she said with a slight giggle, she then sat on a small bench made of the same material whereas Blossom and Buttercup were near the metal doors

"Me and Buttercup are just gonna do a quick patrol of the city for any other machine monsters like before, can you send a signal when Dexter has finished looking at that Wish Star thingy?" asked Blossom

"No problem Blossom" said Bubbles

"Have fun" said Buttercup as she and Blossom went through the metal doors and disappeared

* * *

For the past twenty minutes, Teo did nothing but sit next to a soft block which he had stacked two more on to make it look taller than him, Bubbles had a boy band magazine in her hands which she had been reading for a while as well as making quick check ups on Teo by simply panning to the right, she had a concerned look on her face though. _"Why isn't Teo doing anything?" _she thought; Bubbles finally places the magazine down and turns slightly to face Teo properly who just looked at the wall paying no attention to Bubbles. She then hunches forward with her elbows on her knees holding her head up looking even more concerned, she may have never met many young children, but Teo was definitely the most shy and upset looking child she has ever seen _"What is Mango Island like?" _she thought

Soon she dove out of her thoughts when she heard the metal doors open and there was Dexter who walked in "I have the results" said Dexter "Can I ask you to come to the my lab in the main quarters"

"Sure thing" said Bubbles, she soon stood up and opened the rope door to enter the playroom, Teo noticed Bubbles walking up to him but did nothing as Bubbles slowly picks him up and takes him out of the room where his shoes were

After putting his shoes back on, Bubbles and Dexter entered the metal room with Teo in her arms and the whirring sound occurred again once Dexter pushed the top button

* * *

At the main lab where they were before, Dexter was facing all three Powerpuff Girls after Bubbles signalled them back, Teo remained in Bubbles's arms though, and on the table in between them to the right was the orange Wish Star on a small stand

"Ok, so what I was able to learn from it is that the logic behind this 'Wish Star' as Teo calls it… is beyond science" said Dexter, "It was as my first assumption - Magic - which is of course beyond my skills of science. Therefore I was unable to tap into its capabilities to learn of it more… of course, as it's name implies, it may possibly grant wishes, but I do not know how to activate it"

"Ok, so what do we have to do?" asked Buttercup

"Quite simple actually, I'd like you to take the Wish Star to my ally and friend who is an expert in magic, the Grim Reaper" said Dexter

"Wait, as in Grim from Endsville?" asked Blossom "You know who lives there as well, that psychopath Mandy, she owns Grim!"

"I am quite aware you girls never get along with Mandy" said Dexter "In fact no one does besides Billy and Irwin, but you hardly need to see Mandy specifically, just Grim. Simply tell him I asked if he could study this Wish Star and how it works"

"Well we hate going to Endsville, but we'll do it" said Blossom lacking confidence "In the meantime, can you locate a place called Mango Island? It's the name of Teo's home"

"That's well in my power, I'll do it immediately" said Dexter

"C'mon girls, we have a star to deliver" said Blossom who takes the Wish Star off the table

The girls walked to the outer area where the big letter was and they flew off east, Bubbles panned her head to Teo every so often with a concerned look on her face

* * *

The girls slowly got closer to a new area, Teo felt an unnerving vibe in the area, the girls slowly lowered themselves closer to the ground as they flew, Teo got a good look of the area, the houses were all gloomy looking, most gardens had nothing but grass and most of the trees had no leaves whatsoever

"Endsville… creepy as ever" said Buttercup

Soon one house got their attention so they slowly landed in front of it, there they saw a tall 7ft skeleton wearing thick black robes, only his skull and bony hands could be seen. This skeleton was sitting on a long chair with his feet up reading a magazine with a pair of reading glasses, he tips his head slightly to the side to see the Powerpuff Girls walking up to him

"You know how much Mandy hates you all" said the skeleton in a strange accent to Teo

"We don't exactly like Mandy either Grim" said Buttercup "But we came here because Dexter needs your help"

Grim was silent for a moment, but soon he smirks and stands up off the bench putting his magazine and glasses down "What would Dexter like me to do?"

"Its this star" said Blossom as he hands the Wish Star over to Grim "This little kid here named Teo wanted Dexter to examine that thing called a Wish Star, but magic is beyond his capabilities so he asked if you could examine it"

Grim looked at the Wish Star from different angles "Well judging by its name, my guess it grants wishes, but I'll have a look into it. I'll inform Dexter the second I get info"

"Thanks Grim" said Blossom

"Oh and one more thing" said Grim "That kid is the one who brought this Wish Star right? Teo was it?"

"Yeah why?" asked Bubbles

"Then allow me to read his mind so I can get the full details" said Grim, he soon walked closer and placed his hand near Teo's head

A faint purplish mist engulfed Grim's hand, Teo's forehead glowed an even fainter purple. But to their shock, a blue shock shot out of Teo's head striking Grim's head causing him to step back quickly shaking his hand in pain "Tch! A mind-lock"

"Mind-lock?" asked Bubbles tilting her head slightly

"A very powerful form of magic, someone must've placed one on him making it so people he trusts deep down can read his thoughts" said Grim

"Who would do that?" asked Blossom

"No idea" said Grim, "This might sound strange, but may I keep the child for a while?"

"Why?" asked Buttercup sounding surprised

"People he trusts deep down are the only ones who can read his mind, in order for me to get the full details, I'll either need to get his trust to read his mind, or let him say for himself… either way I'll need him with me until then" said Grim

"Well… I dunno" said Blossom "Its not you I don't trust, its Mandy… surely she'll give Teo a hard time right?"

"I'm aware of that yes" said Grim "I'll make sure Mandy gives him no problems whatsoever. I'd gladly examine the Wish Star in Tech Square but I just know Mandy is going to force me to do her chores so it'll be best I study it here, do you mind?"

The Powerpuff Girls were silent, but after a few seconds, Bubbles slowly kneels down and places Teo onto his feet and looks at him directly in the eye "Now Teo, Mr. Grim here needs you to stay with him until he can figure out that Wish Star you brought to him ok? I promise you'll be just fine, but if anything happens, scream as loud as you can, we'll hear you and come to you as fast as we can, can you be a brave boy for us?"

"C-can't you… stay with me?" asked Teo quietly

"Being a Powerpuff Girl is super hard work" said Bubbles "We have to finish our patrols, but don't worry, we should be finished in a few hours"

Teo was silent, but he soon muttered the word "Ok" very quietly

Bubbles soon gave Teo a comforting hug "Good boy, be brave". Soon the girls slowly floated up and then they shot off into the sky, soon coming out of sight; Teo just simply watched the skies where the girls disappeared into

Grim slowly kneels down and gently grabbed Teo's hand making the boy look up to the skeleton. Grim then slowly guided Teo into the house, he was forced to bend down a little so his hand could keep a hold of Teo's.

In the house had a somewhat cosy atmosphere, but Teo couldn't help but feel uneasy about everything in this place. Teo soon ended up at a large puffy couch, Grim then picked up Teo and placed him on the couch since he was too small to climb up it

As Teo sat on the couch leaning back, feeling a little sunken into it, Grim then sat next to Teo with the Wish Star on his lap. "Ok Teo, the only way I can learn the details of the story behind this is either you trust me enough to let me read your mind, or you tell me directly". Teo was silent as he had his hands together and his tail curled around him like a real cat would, he muttered a little but still seemed to have lacked the confidence to speak "Ok Teo, how's about I examine this Wish Star first, and you can tell me what happened when your ready"

Teo was silent, finally turning to Grim, a few seconds later he then gave a slow nod "O-ok" he muttered, soon he felt the bone hand from Grim rubbing his head as Grim gave a smile

"Good lad" said Grim "Anyway, I'll need to examine this in my basement where I keep my magical scanning equipment, and I don't want to leave you alone in this place, so I'm gonna need to-"

"Grim!" shouted a deep girl's voice making Teo jump. Teo looked to his right to see someone walking down a set of stairs, the girl entered the room giving off a murderous vibe. The girl looked about 12-years old, was quite slim, wore a pink dress with a blue and yellow flower on it and big black shoes, she had short blonde hair in the shape of devil horns, vicious red eyes and a black headband. "What are you doing in **my** part of the couch?" she asked aggressively

"Calm down Mandy" said Grim "I'm simply welcoming our new guest"

The girl named Mandy looked to see Teo who just looked back shyly, his tail wagged a little showing he was feeling tense, Mandy then looked back at Grim "And why do we have some tailed brat in my house?" her question made Teo feel upset

"Mandy! Please don't be rude" said Grim "Now I-"

"You didn't just tell me what to do did you?" scolded Mandy, Grim actually leaned back a little feeling nervous

"Look? I need little Teo here to stay with us for a while until I can finish my business with Dexter" said Grim "And I need Teo to trust me enough to explain the gravity of the situation"

"Like I really care what that four-eyed moron wants you to do" said Mandy "Now your gonna do that in your own time! I want you to get on with my chores!"

"Mandy, I promised to get working on it immediately" said Grim

Mandy then suddenly spat into one of Grim's eye sockets surprising him a little, Grim then gave a look of disgust at Mandy "I don't care bone-head, now get to work before I stuff your head in the trash again!"

Grim gave a look of anger, but he then stood up and placed the Wish Star on Teo's lap. "Teo, I'm gonna need to do some work around the house before I get to work, will you be fine where you are?"

Teo just sat there quietly, but he then muttered the word "Ok" quietly. Grim didn't answer back, instead he simply walked up after giving Teo a nod. Mandy then sat down on the couch where Grim sat, causing Teo to shuffle back into the back corner of the couch to try and keep away from Mandy. Mandy then picked up a small rectangular object with buttons on it, pressed one of them and a large screen started showing pictures with sounds. Teo immediately assumed this was what was called a television set Bowla mentioned before many times

It soon reminded Teo of Bowla and began to tip his head down feeling worried about her, ignoring his surroundings thinking about home, and how much danger is it in. Is Bowla alright? Is her father alright? What is the Jester Lord doing? And will he ever figure out the Wish Star? Teo simply gives off a quiet sigh as he tried to keep his mind off it for now since he knew there was nothing he could do at this point

* * *

Twenty minutes had passed and there was no change in scenery, Mandy continued to watch the TV while Teo sat quietly doing nothing except keeping a hold of the Wish Star the entire time. Soon Grim walked in with his robes looking a bit messed and had a bit of dust and dirt on his head which was now fully visible as his hood was moved down, he then sighed looking tired, Teo could easily relate to Grim since Teo knew both of them had to work hard for nothing

"Everything's done" muttered Grim

"Whatever, now keep quiet, this is the good part!" said Mandy

Grim simply walked behind the couch so as to not get in the way of the TV and he stands near Teo "Ok Teo, I'm gonna exa-"

Suddenly a beeping sound occurred in Grim's robes, an irritated Mandy then took the TV remote and pressed a button making the screen stay still "Your lucky I have live-pause on this" scolded Mandy

Grim ignored Mandy as he dug into his robes and took out a small black device "Darn it, I have to do my job now… sheesh 231 deaths? A Grim Reaper's job is never easy" Grim then puts the device back into his robes and looks at Teo "Sorry kid, but I gotta go work now, I'll examine that Wish Star when I get back and… on second thought, I'll take it with me to work" Grim then gently takes the Wish Star from Teo and puts it away in his robes "I remembered I've got the right equipment to study it in me own scythe"

"Fine whatever Grim, now just get out!" said Mandy

"I'll be back in a while Teo" said Grim "I'll be sure to give you the info on this Wish Star when I get back"

With that, Grim made his way to the front door and left, leaving Teo and Mandy in the house alone

"Good" said Mandy "Parents away for the week, bone-head gone, and a kid who knows the meaning of 'shut-up'… I'll have a perfect day, assuming Billy doesn't come in" Teo felt a little upset with that comment about him, but he kept quiet nonetheless, not wanting to get into trouble

Ten minutes had passed and everything was quiet still. Mandy had not batted an eye to Teo at all who just sat there doing nothing, he didn't even keep an eye on the TV too much, there was complete and total silence from the two, the only sounds at all were from the TV

_*Grumble*_

Mandy looked around wondered what the sound was, she then looked at Teo to see he was keeping his hands on his belly looking a little upset, soon the same sound occurred again, coming from Teo. Mandy just tuts as she presses a button on her remote more and the TV got a little louder, but another grumble sound came from Teo again interrupting the TV still. Mandy then pauses her TV. "Grim! Feed this kid will you!" there was no answer "Oh that's right, he's off Reaping… the kid can wait" Mandy then plays the TV again continuing to watch it

But the TV continued to get interrupted by Teo's growling stomach; after five more grumbles, Mandy eventually gets too frustrated, so she pauses the TV and stands up. "Fine! I'll feed you!" said Mandy, Teo felt nervous though "Why the heck didn't you say anything?" asked Mandy

"I…" Teo became silent once more

"Well?" asked Mandy

"I ah… I didn't… want to get into trouble" said Teo

Mandy raised an eyebrow at Teo "Why would you get into trouble?" she asked

"M-miss Hulgary… hit me for saying I was hungry" said Teo looking upset just thinking about it as he gently rubbed his right cheek feeling a faint stinging sensation "She said… I was interrupting her book"

Mandy soon began to get why Teo was so shy "Child abuse" she mumbled. "Whatever" she said as she walked up to Teo and was about to pick him up, Teo just sat there keeping still as Mandy scooped up the small boy easily and held him a little close, but just to carry him. But before Mandy could do anything, she caught a scent from Teo's hair

"URGH!" Mandy shouted as she dropped the boy back on the couch scaring him

"I, I'm sorry!" shouted Teo flinching

"You freaking REEK!" said Mandy

"I'm sorry!" shouted Teo

"When was the last time you had a bath?" asked Mandy

"I…" Teo calmed down a little looking up at Mandy with an upset look on his face "We… we couldn't afford baths"

Mandy's eyes widened at Teo's answer "You've NEVER had a wash in your entire life?"

"Mike did… leave me out in the rain… a-a few times all night" said Teo looking back down

"_His growling is just gonna interrupt my show!" _thought Mandy _"But I can't take him to the kitchen like THIS! He friggin stinks!" _soon an option came to Mandy's mind, but she just gently places her hand in front of her head sighing, feeling ashamed for even thinking it _"Am I really gonna have to give this brat a bath?" _she thought

"S-sorry" mumbled Teo thinking he did something wrong

"Teo…" said Mandy "I can't watch my show with your stupid stomach growling and your stink is bothering me even more"

"S-should… I leave?" asked Teo

"N-no" said Mandy "Look, I'm gonna hate this so much… but come on upstairs, I'm gonna have to give you a bath before I can even feed you" Teo's eyes widened feeling surprised "So come on" she said as she began to walk towards the hallway where the stairs are, Teo was confused at first, but he knew Mandy wanted him to follow her, so Teo slowly got off the couch and began to follow her up the stairs

* * *

"_Thank heck I got that live-pause thing on my TV" _Mandy thought as she watched the bathtub slowly fill up with warm water with traces of bubbles around the edges, she kneeled down leaning against the tub with her arms crossed and her shoes off so as to avoid them getting wet

Teo sat on the closed toilet with his shoes off as well, Mandy shown a sign of disgust at Teo's lack of hygiene. "Right kid, get your clothes off" said Mandy, Teo obeyed without hesitation, he took off his red ripped top and looked around for a place to put it

"W-where… should I put it?" asked Teo

Mandy turned to him to answer, but she was silenced by what Teo had hidden under his shirt. His entire chest and shoulders had several bruises and even one or two scars, one of them even looked like a knife wound like he was cut badly, Mandy just looked at the six-year-old kids six years of horrible abuse with widened eyes, she may know a lot about torture and had sometimes enjoyed seeing others with it, but she had never imagined seeing it on a child so young. "I-in that basket over there" said Mandy, Teo looked at the basket, got off the toilet to take his ruined shirt to it making him turn around showing his back to Mandy. Even Teo's back had many scars and bruises, but what made Mandy shocked the most, was something right in between the shoulder blades

Right in the middle, was actually a black strange star shaped tattoo with an even smaller star in it with a circle in between the two stars and a bigger circle over the bigger star. Mandy was quite surprised to see a kid younger than her having something she wasn't allowed until 18, almost impressed. But kept silent none the less

Much later Teo has had his bath and was now in a towel sitting on a large comfy bed as Mandy looked through her parents wardrobes to find any clothes that fit Teo, Teo actually felt very refreshed, his skin felt smoother and his brown spiky hair was now brighter and looked more full of life, soon Mandy came across blue full body pyjamas like what toddlers wore, it had a small yellow flower on the right side of the chest and open parts for hands "Can't believe mom and dad still kept this" Mandy mumbled. She moved over to Teo and did a size comparison with his and the pyjamas, a perfect size oddly enough _"This must've either stretched in the wash or this kid is really that small" _she thought

* * *

A little later, we find Mandy and Teo in the kitchen, Teo had looked around as he was carried from all around the house, seeing everything look so clean and comfy, completely different from his home, especially how his tail had been seen by everyone and no one had said anything bad to him, he even looked down to see the blue pyjamas he was wearing, so much softer and more comfortable than his old ruined clothes, he began to feel something inside him, something he has never felt before

Mandy opened the fridge and there was quite a bit of food in there, Teo's eyes widened slightly, in his entire life the only foods he's ever seen are Mangos and the sweets Samantha gets, though they're normally a blur so he couldn't see them properly. Mandy then took out two things from the fridge, they were both together so Mandy could easily pick them up with just one hand. It was a rectangular object made of a plastic like substance and a green square card-like object with a green fruit on it and a clear thing stuck to the side, Mandy placed them in Teo's spare hand, his other hand was around the back of Mandy's neck to hold on. Mandy then took out a red metal spherical object looking like a cup. Mandy then walked back to the living room

Mandy placed Teo on the couch again and Mandy sat on her usual spot, she then faced Teo making him nervous "There… your all clean, you've got food… now maybe I can watch my program in peace now"

"S-sorry" mumbled Teo as he looked at his two bits of food in a confused manner

Mandy rolled her eyes looking a little annoyed "What's the matter, haven't you ever had a chocolate bar before?"

"I… I only ate mangos" said Teo looking upset.

Mandy sighed _"Nothing can be easy with this kid can it?" _she thought _"Should've made him leave" Mandy soon leaned over and removed the wrapping from the chocolate bar to reveal the brown substance, she then took the green box, removed the clear thing and stabbed it into the top of the box revealing to be a straw, Teo recognised this as Bowla had sometimes came to Teo with one of those boxed drinks_

"S-sorry" said Teo "A-and t-thank you"

"Whatever" said Mandy as she un-paused her TV and the two began to sit quietly watching the TV

Teo took a bite out of the chocolate bar and began to suddenly feel very good on the inside, he then leaned back on the couch feeling more relaxed, not only did the chocolate taste so good, but it was literally the first thing Teo had eaten that wasn't a mango, so the change felt so good

Teo was now beginning to understand what the feeling inside him was, it was happiness, something he was glad to have finally felt after so many years of misery. Bowla may have been somewhat nice to him, but it wasn't enough to make him feel happy. But soon Teo looked down a little thinking about Mango Island and its invaders, wondering if Bowla was alright

Teo soon shook those thoughts away, he knew this, the only way for him to help was to know what secrets were in the Wish Star and then try to stop the Jester Lord from using it

* * *

In a dark room, there on a large colourful throne was the Jester Lord himself who sat with one leg over the other watching a giant holographic screen, the Jester Lord had his elbows on his knees and his hands together by the fingers in front of his mouth looking a little perplexed. On the holographic screen was the Jeston known as Bombzai, who had a few teeth missing and looked a bit burnt

"So after an hour or so" said the Jester Lord "You failed to bring me back the Wish Star?"

"Terribly sorry my lord" said Bombzai "The kid had a few unexpected talents"

"And what of Scythe n Dice?" asked the Jester Lord

"Still recovering" said Bombzai "The fight ended in a draw because that Beardo had a hidden grenade and explosive proof clothing under his suit… we were forced to take him away from Mango Island to recover since he was losing a lot of Stardust and that Mervaradi guy was able to limp away with few casualties"

"I come home and in an hour you all performed badly? The kid got away with my Wish Star and the Mervaradi man isn't dead?" asked the Jester Lord "And how was a little kid able to defeat you? Surely your not lying to me"

"I swear my lord I wouldn't lie to you" said Bombzai in a panic "That kid somehow deflected my Big-Boom Rocket with his teeny tail… that tail of his is stronger than I thought"

"So the first Wish Star we came across immediately gets stolen by a cat-kid" said the Jester Lord "Fine, its only one… I have an idea, I want you to go back to Mango Island, I'll give you your next order there"

"It'll be difficult sir" said Bombzai "I need a new jetpack and a Warp Crystal, my new jetpack is currently being made so it should take about an hour or so"

"Fine" said Jester Lord "I'll provide another Warp Crystal, this time don't lose it, we barely have enough as it is. And I want this performance of yours to be five-star"

"Of course" said Bombzai "I'll be sure to put on a perfect performance with no flaws at all"

"Good" said Jester Lord "They're the type of performances I like"

To be continued


	4. Teo's Power!

_**The Tale of Teonado**_

Chapter 4: Teo's Power!

Teo had two feelings going through him at the same time, the feeling of suspense and concern over Mango Island and how its doing since the Jester Lord's attack, but the other feeling was happiness, during the first few hours of being with Mandy, he was cleaned and gotten food that wasn't a mango. Despite his mixed emotions, he continued to sit in silence so as to not bother Mandy as she continued to watch the TV. Teo had finished his chocolate and carton of juice for quite some time and felt satisfied food-wise but his mind was so boggled, can't believing this whole event of encountering the Jester Lord, fleeing Mango Island, meeting the Powerpuff Girls and is now being raised by a bully of a girl happened in a single day. Soon Teo's eyes grew heavy, the comfort of the couch, the contentment of the food, the comfortable pyjamas and his mind going everywhere began to take toll on his tiny body

But that all changed the second a loud scream was heard from outside, Mandy looked over her shoulder out the window, soon Teo and Mandy's heads shot to the door which quickly opened revealing two young boys - being the same age as Mandy - who immediately ran into Mandy's house and slammed the door shut and using all three locks on the door

One boy had a big pink nose, a red cap covering orange-reddish hair, a white shirt with a blue stripe across it, purple trousers and red and white shoes, the other was a dark-skinned boy with thick black glasses, black hair which curved at the front, a round nose, a yellow shirt with a bowtie, green trousers and black shoes. Both boys looked scared as they kept the door closed

"Billy, Irwin? What the hell are you two doing?" asked Mandy

"IT'S A CLOWN!" shouted the pink nosed kid named Billy

"He had these crazy swords yo!" shouted the other kid named Irwin

Mandy sighs as she slowly stands up and walks towards the door "Out of the way you morons!" the word 'clown' got Teo's attention and he immediately jumped off the couch and walked with Mandy suspecting something. Mandy pushed Billy and Irwin out of the way and unlocked the door causing the two to panic, she opens the door and there she saw a man in a clown outfit indeed

The outfit was a dark green with a lighter green in the middle going downwards, light green trousers with dark green curved shoes with yellow rims, he had white gloves with yellow rims on them as well as a yellow collar and a dark green cape which started from his hips and two scabbards on the back of his hips, they were shaped like they were for the curved swords the Arabians used. He also had a strange mask, the right side was completely black with a white eye with a teardrop hanging down, the left side was white and spiked only covering his eye so half of his mouth could be seen, and finally he wore a short two pointed green jester had with yellow stars on them and a crescent moon object on each point, but unlike a clown, he had no make-up or big red nose. This man was walking up to Mandy's door slowly like a gentlemen, but his appearance made Teo shudder

"Hello there" he spoke with a posh tone "Pardon for the intrusion but are you by chance the one they call Mandy?"

"What's it to you?" asked Mandy with an emotionless look to her as Billy and Irwin shivered behind Mandy's back while Teo stood next to Mandy looking a little scared

"Well I'm searching for the Grim Reaper and I've heard from several people that you own this Reaper right?" asked the man

"I do… but why do you want Grim?" asked Mandy

"You see" said the man "Recently he had stolen a very important item from my lord. But luckily it was only recent so I know he must still have it. I merely came to ask where he is so I can calmly request this Reaper to return it"

"And… what did Grim… _steal_ from you?" asked Mandy feeling suspicious

"It is a large glass star" said the man "Its worth thousands and my lord is quite the collector of rare and valuable jewels"

Teo's eyes widened at this comment, he knew this man was talking about the Wish Star he had given to Grim

"I haven't seen Grim, he said he was off reaping so god knows where he's gonna be" said Mandy bluntly

"I see" said the man with a bit more of a fierce tone to him, he then slowly bends his knees to Mandy's height and then uses his left hand to grab Mandy's hair tightly giving her a slight reaction but still shown no signs of fear "Then it will be in your best interests to figure out where he is in I'd say about three hours" he said now sounding more wicked than before "Otherwise I'll be playing Barber Shop with you and … Cutting a little off the top so to speak"

Suddenly something got over Teo and he swiftly shot his hand at the man's knee giving him a vicious scratch with his claws which not only ripped his clothing but tore open his skin slightly, the man quickly gave out a yelp of pain as he shot back letting go of Mandy who looked down at Teo looking a bit surprised by Teo's guts, Teo seemed surprised at this himself. She then looks back at the man who held his knee up looking at his scratch wound feeling frustrated, Mandy's eyes widened slightly at the man's knee, seeing instead of blood coming out, it was a golden mist which slowly flew up into the sky for a moment until the man patched it up quickly using a small bandage he kept in his pocket

"You've got nerves kid" said the man looking quite angry "No one strikes Scimitaar and gets away with it… but I'm on a tight schedule so your execution gets delayed for a moment…" he then turned to Mandy after scaring Teo "And as for you Mandy… I'll be expecting your full cooperation in three hours, so be sure you figure out where Grim is or they'll be two deaths in this town tonight!"

The man supposedly named Scimitaar slowly walked away making Mandy close the door, she gave off a silent huff not caring what he had to say "Freak" she muttered, she then faced Billy and Irwin "Look, if your gonna stay here then expect to play video games with me where I kick your butt at"

"No problem" said Billy with a big grin as he took out a game he had with him the entire time "I just bought a game today before we met that scary clown, lets break it in"

"Monopoly?" asked Mandy "Surely you could've picked up a better game right?"

"They had a bargain and I didn't have much money" said Billy

"Still, Monopoly's kinda fun right dearie?" asked Irwin trying to sound like he was trying to flirt with Mandy, something Teo was familiar with when it came to Bowla

"Fine whatever" said Mandy "It's better than nothing I suppose. You in cat-kid?" she asked Teo surprising him

"Um… am I… a-allowed?" asked Teo sounding shy

"Of course!" said Billy "A fourth player is always cool to have"

"Plus a Wii game is fun for everyone yo" said Irwin

"I've… never played… a Wii game" mumbled Teo looking even more shy

"Do you even know the rules of Monopoly?" asked Mandy

"N-no… sorry" said Teo

"Well if you wanna join, then Irwin can teach you the rules as we go along" said Mandy "But only if you do wanna join, now decide"

"Um… o-ok" muttered Teo thinking he would get told off for not playing

"Irwin, teach him as we go along, I don't want someone who's gonna waste hours to do one turn" demanded Mandy

* * *

Two hours had passed and the exhausted Grim Reaper walked up to Mandy's door, he then leaned his arm against the door sighing "How I did all that in two hours I'll never know!" he mumbled "Hmm… I wonder how Teo's doing?"

"Grim!" shouted a girl's voice from afar, he turned around to see the Powerpuff Girls flying to him

"Ah girls…" muttered Grim feeling a bit relieved "How are things?"

"Doing well" said Blossom "Took longer than we thought but we finished our patrolling. How's Teo?"

"Not sure, I had to leave for my Grim Reaping two hours ago" said Grim

"You mean you left Teo alone with Mandy?" shouted Bubbles in shock

"I know I know" said Grim "Bad idea but I had no freaking choice, I just hope Mandy hasn't reduced Teo to a pile of mush"

Grim soon opens the door with the Powerpuff Girls following him into Mandy's house. But to their shock, they saw Teo completely unharmed and in blue pyjamas while playing a Wii game with Billy, Mandy and Irwin

"Teo's ok?" mumbled Grim, making Mandy turn to see Grim

"Oh good your home, now get into the kitchen and get us some drinks" ordered Mandy "And you three" she said looking at the Powerpuff Girls as Grim sighed to the kitchen "If you came here for something, then do it and get out, if not then get out faster!"

"We're… just here for Teo" said Blossom

"Well you can wait!" said Mandy "We're in the middle of a game and he's the only decent opponent despite being new to the game"

The girls look at one another confused, but they soon entered the room to watch their game, Blossom sat down on the floor crossing her legs, near her was Irwin and Billy who did the same thing as they played the game, Buttercup stood behind the couch slightly leaning on Teo's side and Bubbles sat on a spare chair

* * *

_Warning: if you haven't played Monopoly or know the rules, this may get confusing here… but who really doesn't know the rules or played the game these days?_

* * *

So far the game looked pretty close, every property was bought but Mandy was the only one with Monopolies, three of them in fact, she could've had more and Billy and Irwin could've had Monopolies as well, but Teo was not only a quick learner, but he had shown to be quite clever as well. He owned at least one property from each street except for three of them (which Mandy owned), because he owned at least one property on each street, the others couldn't get Monopolies. Soon Grim came in with the drinks and placed them on a nearby table, he then sat on the floor with his legs crossed and watched the game

Ten minutes had passed and Teo slowly got more of an advantage, each time Teo got a ton of cash through passing GO or got lucky with the Chance and Community Chest cards, he bought Billy or Irwin's properties for triple their original amount, of course Billy and Irwin being gullible, they went with the deal and Teo eventually got three Monopolies. Mandy looked over to Teo, she was impressed with Teo's quick learning and clever strategy

"Ah crap!" Billy shouted as he landed on Teo's most expensive property with Hotels on it, with very little money and no properties to sell, Billy immediately became bankrupt

"Well that's Billy out" said Buttercup feeling a little happy seeing Teo starting to win

"I'm not sure what surprises me more" said Irwin "The fact that Teo's winning or how fast he learned the game"

Five more minutes had passed and the pressure was really on now, Irwin had landed on one of Teo's properties again and got bankrupted, what made it worse was that his last two mortgaged properties now go to Teo, thus giving him four Monopolies, tying with Mandy who also just got her forth one. Grim and the girls leaned forward slightly enjoying the tension the game brought to both Mandy and Teo, all was left was the two to try and bankrupt the other, they all had hotels on all of their properties. Mandy gave off a quiet huff of annoyance, she had never met an opponent who was just as good as her, especially since this is Teo's very first time playing Monopoly and using a Wii Remote

The true competition began as Mandy and Teo began to continue the game, while Mandy seemed determined to win, Teo kept his shy look. So far the game was even, they kept landing on each others properties losing money fast, but they kept regaining money as they passed GO or got lucky Chance or Community Chest. But soon enough, Teo had landed on the Go to Jail space and was sent to the Jail Space

"Oh man!" said Billy "Now that Teo's in jail, he can't get any money from GO or do anything"

"Relax Billy" said Bubbles "Teo has a Get out of Jail Free card, he can just use that"

When it came to Teo's turn again, he saw his three options. Roll for a Double, Pay the Bail or Use the Card. Teo thought for a few seconds, but then selected Roll for a Double confusing everyone except Mandy and Blossom, the dice rolled but no Doubles

"But… you have a card" said Buttercup

"Don't you get it?" said Mandy "He **wants** to stay in Jail! It's the best case scenario at this point"

"Huh?" asked everyone except Teo, Mandy and Blossom

"If Teo stays in there, he doesn't land on Mandy's spaces" said Blossom "And if Mandy continues to land on Teo's spaces, Teo's just gonna get free money"

Teo gives off a slow nod "Y-yes" he said quietly

And that jail time proved valuable, Mandy continued to land on Teo's more expensive spaces losing a lot of money in the span of three turns. Once Teo's time was up, he used his Card to get out free and even landed on a space which Mandy didn't own, so he didn't lose a single bit of money. And that was only the start

* * *

Ten minutes had passed and everyone grew shocked of what was happening, for some odd reason, Teo's luck skyrocketed as he continued to miss every one of Mandy's spaces and Mandy hit every one of Teo's. Soon Mandy was forced to mortgage her properties, but it was hardly helping as Mandy even started to lose the money she would get passing GO almost instantly.

"_Sheesh… what the hells going on? Why so suddenly I'm starting to bleed money? I never lose! I refuse to lose to a little kid who never played the game before!" _Mandy thought

Soon enough, Mandy was now five spaces from GO but the space in front of it was Mayfair, the most expensive space in the game and Teo owned it, with its hotels, it would cost Mandy 2000. What was worse was that Mandy only had 1000 and all her spaces were mortgaged, in other words, if she lands on that space, or the one before it being worth 1800, she would lose, but if she gets a five and lands on GO, she would receive 400 and that would help her unmortgage some of her properties to get back into the game. Mandy kept an emotionless look but she gave off a tense vibe, the only one who sense it was Teo who began to feel guilty

There was a strong silence completely full of suspense, it had been her turn for at least five seconds but was hesitant to roll the dice. Soon enough she shook the Wii Remote rolling the dice, they both fell onto the board, the first one to stop was a three, making Mandy's eyes widen. The 2nd dice continued to spin a little

"_Two! Two! Two! Two! Two! Two! Two!" _Mandy screamed in her head trying to keep her cool

The 2nd dice landed, but lady luck wasn't on Mandy's side… the dice landed on a one, giving Mandy a four thus moving her to Mayfair, thus being forced to pay 2000... And lose the game

Everyone grew shocked as a disturbing silence filled the air, Mandy just lowered her arms losing her grip on the Wii Remote causing it to dangle in the air due to the strap still being on as she watched her properties become Teo's. Teo suddenly felt a strong chill down his spine as the screen shown big letters saying 'Teo Wins!' so he quickly takes the strap off and places the Wii Remote next to him

"I… Lost" said Mandy softly, almost sounding scarier than her aggressive tone making Buttercup move back, even Irwin and Billy shuffled away from Mandy "I… never lose"

Teo immediately panicked as he climbed onto the arm of the couch next to him and leaped like a cat into the surprised Bubbles's arms

Mandy slowly stood up taking the wrist strap off and throwing it gently onto the couch, Teo flinched even more causing his claws to dig into Bubbles's arms as his tail puffed up, Bubbles flinched from the pain of Teo's claws. "Irwin?" Mandy asked softly

"Y-y-y-y-yes?" asked the terrified Irwin

"Come with me for a minute" said Mandy softly

Teo knew exactly what was gonna happen, Mandy was going to beat-up Irwin, knowing he had to stop her somehow. Before Mandy and Irwin could go around the corner

"So Grim! Did you find anything about the magic star that grants wishes?" Teo asked loudly hoping to get Mandy's attention, and it worked. Mandy turned around losing all rage remembering about the star Grim was studying, the Powerpuff Girls and Grim were a little confused with Teo's outburst

"Uh… actually yes" said Grim "I learned everything about it and how to activate it's powers. In fact I was gonna get going to Dexter's soon to give him the info"

"Well isn't that interesting?" said Mandy with her usual tone, but her comment made the others nervous "Maybe I should've let you study that sooner before doing my choirs… well no matter, why not take me with you to see Dexter then?"

Grim sighed knowing exactly why she wanted to go too "Fine, since I can't exactly refuse anything you say"

"A wish granting star?" asked Billy "Sounds cool! I'm in!"

"Me too!" said Irwin

"Very well" said Grim "I guess we can all teleport there… oh first. Teo?"

"Y-yes?" asked Teo

"Before we get going, your gonna need a change of clothes" said Grim "Bubbles, please put Teo down"

Bubbles nods and places Teo down gently and steps back, soon Grim points his finger at Teo making a rainbow light hit him. In a quick blast of light, Teo now appeared in new but similar clothes

He had a red t-shirt like his old one, but wasn't torn at all, it was softer and had yellow flowers with orange petals around it, he had blue denim trousers with a hole for his tail and black slip-on shoes with white socks in them. Teo looked around seeing his new appearance, it wasn't different from his old appearance, but the new clothes were softer and looked more appealing. A slight smile grew on his face "T-thank you Grim"

"No problem kiddo" said Grim

* * *

With that, the gang went outside so Grim could have a bit more room in opening a portal. They all give Grim a bit of space as he made a huge black scythe with a sharp blade appear in a puff of black smoke. But just as Grim was about to cut open a portal

Suddenly a small blade shot from behind and smacked into the scythe forcing it out of Grim's hands. The gang immediately looked behind them to see the man in the green jester's clothing once more "I decided to come early"

"S-Scimitaar" Teo mumbled

"IT'S THE CRAZY SWORD CLOWN!" shouted Billy sounding terrified as he shot behind Irwin, but Irwin then shot behind Billy, then the two shot behind Mandy who just sighs

"Well now… I see Grim has arrived" said Scimitaar as he drew his two curved swords from behind him

"Who… are you?" asked Grim

"My name is Scimitaar, the Jester Lord's 2nd in command"

"Jester Lord?" Teo asked loudly making the others turn to him as he hid behind Bubbles's leg

"Ah… the tailed child. I still have my promise to take care of for striking my knee" said Scimitaar

Billy then mumbled to Irwin "I used to be a clown like him, then I took a cat claw to the-"

Mandy then grabs Billy's lips shutting him up "Say that stupid Skyrim joke again and I'll tear your kneecaps off!"

"Ok!" Billy squeaked

"But I must confess child, I'm surprised you were able to defeat Bombzai, no one has ever bested any of our men in combat, the soldiers maybe but not the elites like him and me" said Scimitaar

"What do you want?" asked Grim

"Simple, I want that Wish Star the child was so stupid and selfish enough to steal from my Lord" said Scimitaar "And if you don't hand it over…"

Suddenly a group of Clowns with swords like the ones on Mango Island charged towards them out of nowhere and in an instant, everyone besides Teo were moved away from one another and had at four clowns each holding their swords right at each childs' necks. Grim didn't have swords around him as he looked to see the others. Mandy shown no signs of fear but was a little surprised at the sudden speed of the clowns, Billy shivered whilst Irwin tried to hold back his tears, Blossom looked around shocked, Bubbles looked really scared while Buttercup looked angry

"At least six heads will roll!" said Scimitaar

"If I give you the Wish Star… you'll spare them?" asked Grim

"Well except for the cat-kid" said Scimitaar scaring Teo "Whether or not you hand it over I'll still kill the kid for scratching me. So its either one head will fall or seven will… your choice Reaper"

Grim kept quiet as he looked around seeing the captives, as for Teo, he looked carefully at Mandy who stood there calmly with four swords to her neck, one quick strike would kill her but she had no fear at all. Teo grew scared for her though, but soon something came over him, desperately not wanting to hand over the Wish Star or have Mandy die, a sudden feeling in his gut came. Teo shed a few tears feeling scared, but soon he looked at Scimitaar looking serious, like he was ready to fight

As Grim dug into his robe sleeve to get the Wish Star, he soon stopped as Teo stood in front of him facing Scimitaar. "What are you doing?" asked the jester

"J-Jester Lord is not… having the Wish Star!" said Teo trying to sound tough but had a very scared tone "And… y-you will… not hurt them at all!"

Scimitaar was silent as he looked at Teo surprised, but he then suddenly bursts out laughing, soon the other clowns began to laugh too while keeping their blades up. Mandy soon faces at Teo who looks at her back

"Well kid… you've made your threat, you gonna go with it?" said Mandy quietly, Teo barely heard it but his sensitive ears made it possible

Teo faced Scimitaar again who finally stopped laughing "G-good one kid" he chuckled "And how exactly are you gonna stop me from taking the Wish Star and killing you?"

"W-with… with my ultimate technique!" said Teo sounding determined, but Scimitaar began to laugh again

"What are you gonna do? Claw me again? Hack a hairball? Chase a ball of yarn?" asked Scimitaar

"N-no backing down now! I haven't used this in a long time… but I still know how to use my Grand Finale attack!" mumbled Teo

Teo then moved his arms into an X in front of him, bending his knees slightly as his tail wagged fast. Teo suddenly began to scream and everyone's laughter stopped as they saw Teo's ultimate technique. To everyone's shock - even Mandy's - Teo actually began to glow blue with sparks shooting out of him. Teo screamed louder and the blue light began to glow brighter, the sparks shot out further and there was even a small tremor. The clowns stepped backward moving their blades away

Soon the light quickly shot back into Teo's chest, but Teo then shot out his arms and legs in a star position and within seconds, a giant blue light shot out of Teo extending as far as 12 blocks around the city, the force of it and the lightning from it blasted away every clown making them scream in agony before changing into little dolls like before. Scimitaar flew back as well screaming in pain whereas the kids and Grim just covered themselves trying to resist the strong wind it brought out

Seconds passed and the gang slowly looked around to see everything was fine, not a single scratch on them or the area around them, but all the clowns had changed into dolls and Scimitaar was now 30 feet away from them with his clothes torn in some places and looked like he was in pain

"I… I'm not hurt at all" muttered Mandy

The gang then looked at Teo who sat on the ground looking exhausted as he glowed a vivid blue with very little sparks emitting from him. They all looked at Teo in absolute shock, never expecting such power from the six-year-old boy

"Teo… what are you?" asked Buttercup

Teo slowly turns to Buttercup, then looks down looking like he was about to cry "I don't know"

"A kid with the abilities of a cat… with the ability to let out a huge blue blast that only harms those who are a threat to him" muttered Grim "This kid has phenomenal powers"

They all look forward to see Scimitaar is gone, but they soon heard a weak laughter from behind, they quickly look to see Scimitaar was behind them holding Grim's Scythe

"Give me back my scythe!" shouted Grim

"Not a chance!" said Scimitaar "I just know this thing will help us locate the Wish Stars, I may not have the Wish Star you got, but I got the next best thing!"

Scimitaar quickly took out a small purple ball and threw it to the ground making a small purplish cloud of smoke blast through the area, the smoke got to the gang causing them to cough. As the smoke cleared, Scimitaar was gone and so was Grim's scythe

"Again!" said Grim clutching his fists "My scythe always gets taken!"

"We'll get it back" said Mandy "We don't need it now right?"

"Travel will be longer that's for sure" said Grim "And my scythe does hold records of the Wish Star… but I have the records in my head too so I can still give out the info"

"We can still fly to Dexter's" said Blossom

"Then I suggest we do" said Irwin

Soon, the Powerpuff Girls and Grim began to fly while carrying the ones who cannot fly. Blossom held Billy, Bubbles held Teo, Buttercup held Irwin and Grim held Mandy, the gang flew over Endsville and began to make their way to Dexter's Tower in Tech Square

* * *

Ten minutes passed and the gang were at Dexter's Tower, they were all with Dexter in the top room from before, but this time a woman shaped android named Computress was with Dexter

"You were attacked by some green clown with swords?" asked Dexter with a look of disbelief

"It sounds strange but its true" said Blossom

"See Mandy! I told you clowns were the ultimate evil!" said Billy

"Please, he was a reject, he couldn't even faze us" said Mandy

"But imagine what would've happened if Teo wasn't there to save us" said Bubbles

"They got lucky it was Teo and not me who beat them" said Mandy with her arms crossed

"Doesn't matter" said Dexter as he fixed his glasses "What's important is what Grim has learned about the Wish Stars"

"I learned near enough everything" said Grim "Better sit down and get some popcorn, cause this is gonna be long"

The gang then sat down at a desk paying complete attention to Grim. Grim then cleared his throat

"_2000 years ago, the Immortals of the Cosmos created 13 magical glass stars, when all of them were together, they had the ability to grant wishes. Once all their wishes were used up, they turned to stone and slept for 100 years to recharge their grand power. But this wasn't so grand to the humans, year after year, wars broke out trying to claim the Wish Stars for their own selfish desires. So many had died for others selfishness, when this got out of hand… the Immortals of the Cosmos let loose a horrid attack on the world wiping out the only people who knew of the Wish Stars, once the bloodbath was over, the Immortals scattered the Wish Stars and had created beings known as Zodian Guardians. With their spirits tied to the Wish Stars, they guarded the gems with their lives, making sure only those of a pure heart would use the Wish Stars for a better use. But they held the weaknesses of a human, forced to have offspring to they could continue to guard the Wish Stars in each generation, but the years went by and still there has been no one of pure heart to claim the Wish Stars"_

"That's everything I learned" said Grim

"But now… we have this Jester Lord character Scimitaar mentioned" said Blossom "He must be planning to make selfish wishes"

"Then the plan is al too clear" said Dexter "We must gather them first and seal them away in an impenetrable vault before they could be used for evil"

"Or better yet, we could try to destroy them so they can never be used for evil" said Blossom

"Or make wishes ourselves" said Mandy making everyone look at her surprised "They need to recharge after 100 years right? Then why not use them, its not like this Jester Lord is gonna live for 100 years right?"

"Mandy" said Grim "We all know your gonna use them for your own selfish desires"

Mandy was silent, but they all knew Grim was right, this made Mandy both a possible ally or an enemy

"But now for the big question" said Dexter "What's your story Teo?"

Teo was a little surprised at Dexter's question, but he knew he had to tell them what happened "O-ok" he muttered

A few minutes passed and Teo had told them everything about his incident with the Jester Lord and the Jestons as they called themselves

"So there's an entire organization filled with evil magic clowns?" asked Billy "I knew clowns were evil!"

"They're not an organization" said Grim "They're a race"

"A race?" asked Irwin surprised "There's actually a race of evil magic clowns"

"Not evil specifically" said Grim "Only the Jester Lord and his men seem to be. Like humans there can be good and evil ones"

"So… what are they? Aliens?" asked Buttercup

"Worse… they're demons" said Grim, this answer got everyone's attention

"D-demons?" asked Bubbles

"Jestons exist in a parallel universe" said Grim "From a universe where demons exist as humans. It is believed the first Jestons came to the human world inspiring the Court Jesters and clowns of today, or maybe the Jestons adapted themselves to look like human clowns and merely got the name of them mixed up… either way because of their representation of humans, they're hard to tell apart and can be easily underestimated, and their magic is no mere parlour trick either, they can all be major threats"

"Sounds stupid that a bunch of demons walk around in stupid clown outfits" said Mandy

"Mock all you want Mandy" said Grim "If these coloured demons are the enemy, then we cannot take them lightly, we saw how fast and surprising the goons were, imagine what the generals like Scimitaar are like"

"Still no match for me" said Mandy

"Maybe… maybe not" said Grim "But now we have to get the other Wish Stars before the Jester Lord… and I just happen to know the location of one of them now"

"R-really?" asked Billy "How?"

"From what I was able to gather" said Grim "Each Wish Star can lead to another, thanks to the one Nekatt was guarding on Mango Island, we can now get the 2nd one"

"Where is it exactly?" asked Mandy

"Its in the Ruins just north of a Kids Next Door Outpost, Mount Blackhead" said Grim "We'll need the assistants of the KND to gain access to the ruins since they sealed it off once Fuse was completely destroyed, in order to make sure no other evil could use it"

"_Fuse?" _Teo thought

"Very well then" said Dexter "I'll contact Nigel Uno, aka Numbah 1 immediately and explain the situation. Computress?"

"Yes Dexter?" asked Computress

"Give them the fastest ship we got" said Dexter

"The Alpha-Nero requires the piloting skills of a master" said Computress

"I know, I must remain here and make contacts. So I'll need you to pilot the ship, can you do it?" asked Dexter

"Master piloting skills for the Alpha-Nero? Childs play" said Computress

Suddenly there was a ringing sound from all around. Dexter stands up and walks up a machine and presses a button making a large holographic screen appear, but to their shock, the screen shown a man in red jester clothing, the others walk up to the screen

"J-Jester Lord!" said Teo sounding scared

"So you're the boss of these Jestons then?" asked Dexter looking serious

"Listen carefully kids!" said Jester Lord "I know you have **my** Wish Star! And you're going to hand it over to me personally"

"Why should we give it to a stupid looking clown like you?" asked Mandy

"Oh… I know you won't try it, but I know Teo will!" said the Jester Lord making Teo surprised "A general of mine will be in the Ruins in the Wild Lands where another Wish Star resides. And I'll be expecting you to bring the Wish Star you have to him… especially if you want them to survive"

"TEO!" shouted a girl's voice, making Teo's eyes widen as he ran in front of the others looking shocked

"B-BOWLA?" exclaimed Teo. The screen moved from the Jester Lord to a glass prison which held Bowla, Mike, Jack and Samantha from Mango Island "Are you all alright?"

"We're fine!" said Bowla "For now"

"But we're all gonna die if he doesn't get this Wish Star thingy!" said Jack

"You better give him what he wants you freak!" demanded Mike "Or else!"

"Please help us Teo!" said Samantha "I'm starving!"

The screen then moved back to the Jester Lord "Well Teo? Will you come to the ruins and bring the Wish Star? You have three hours to come to the Ruins, and if you don't make it, your little friends here will die!"

With that, the screen disappeared making Teo feel scared, but he then turns to Dexter "I have to help them! Especially Bowla!"

"But are we really gonna just give it to him?" asked Bubbles

"Forget it!" said Mandy "I'm not giving up my wishes"

"Then I suggest we try to save them immediately, if we can save them and defeat this general, we'll have two Wish Stars" said Blossom

"Are you really gonna risk their lives to ignore the deal and just fight?" asked Dexter

"Are you forgetting something?" said Bubbles

"We're the Powerpuff Girls!" said Blossom

"We can kick their behinds no problem" said Buttercup

"And you have us on your side" said Billy as he took out a large wooden hammer "We may not be much, but we're tough too, sure as heck I'm willing to help any of my friends any day of the week!"

"Very well" said Dexter "I trust your words, but the enemy is still unpredictable… I'll call more than the Kids Next Door. Good luck everyone!"

"We don't need luck, the Jestons need hope if they're gonna take me on!" said Mandy

With that, the gang followed Dexter and Computress to the elevator to where the Alpha-Nero ship is. Teo felt all too determined to get to the Ruins immediately where the next Wish Star is, and Bowla and the other kids, he knew he had to do whatever it took to save them all from the Jester Lord's wrath. This was the start of Teo's first and possibly most dangerous quest ever

To be continued

* * *

_To explain something a little quickly. The Zodian Guardians mentioned each represent an animal of the Chinese Zodiac. Nekatt, the Zodian Guardian on Mango Island represents the Cat. In some cultures, the Zodiac either had the Cat replacing the Rat or the Rat replacing the Cat. So because of this, there are 13 guardians instead of 12. Also, what animal each Zodian Guardian represents won't be explained but it will be hinted by either they're habits or other things that represents their animal counterpart_

_Either way I hoped you enjoyed this latest instalment of Tale of Teonado_


	5. Golden Crown

_**The Tale of Teonado**_

Chapter 5: Golden Crown

The Alpha-Nero soared through the sky at an alarming speed, but the speed of it felt like nothing to the ones inside the ship, which was shaped like a large fighter jet with room to fit fifteen people. Computress was at the controls flying the ship and had requested not to be bothered as the Alpha-Nero's complicated controls need all her processing data, Teo wasn't sure what that meant but he knew not to bother her regardless.

Teo sat in one of the middle seats next to Bubbles; Mandy sat two seats back next to Grim. The others however, Blossom, Buttercup, Billy and Irwin all stood as they had small conversations, walking was no problem since the areas between the chairs were quite spacey. While everyone seemed calm, Teo could sense their vibes, knowing they must have some doubt about facing the Jestons, even Mandy gave of a similar vibe, but on a much weaker scale. Teo had no idea how he was able to sense these things, much like his Grand Finale attack, he was born with this and has always known how to use it, same with another one of his powers, which he has yet to reveal to anyone except the kids on Mango Island.

"This is so exciting!" said Billy "We're on a super treasure hunt!"

"Try to keep calm Billy" said Blossom "We're on a dangerous mission. If Scimitaar was dangerous enough for us, think of what this other Jeston could be, and lets not forget about the Jester Lord himself… for all we know, he could be a greater threat than Fuse!"

"_Fuse?" _Teo thought. He was curious enough to ask but his shyness made him quiet.

"Blossom's right" said Buttercup "Besides, we can't screw up with anything, especially since a couple of little kids are at risk of dieing"

"I know, I know" said Billy "But if Dexter calls Lance or one of the other Fearsome Four, we have nothing to worry about"

"While it is true they defeated Fuse, but we still don't want to take any risks" said Blossom "Besides, we haven't seen them do anything as a team in a long time, plus we've only seen three of them since"

"Um" Teo muttered.

The kids soon face Teo, "What's the matter Teo?" asked Blossom.

"Um… its that… who's Fuse?" asked Teo.

Blossom's eyes widened "You seriously don't now who Fuse is?"

"S-sorry" said Teo feeling like he was being told off.

"Didn't you recall giant piles of green slime pollute the entire planet?" asked Grim.

"N-no" said Teo "Nothing like that happened on my island"

"Mango Island must've been missed the entire time" muttered Blossom.

"Fuse is an alien" said Mandy. Teo soon stood up on his chair and turned around to see Mandy. "He's a planet consuming alien capable of creating thousands upon thousands of green slime freaks to bring the planet to extinction so he could consume it."

"What made him worse was that he was also capable of creating clones of the heroes with the same powers" said Buttercup "In fact… we would've lost long ago if it wasn't for the Fearsome Four."

"F-Fearsome Four?" asked Teo.

"They are the coolest heroes EVER!" said Billy .

"A rag-tag group of talented kids with extraordinary powers" said Irwin.

"First there's Lance!" said Bubbles "He was trained all around the world to master the ways of the sword and how to be a great leader, he was even trained by Samurai Jack for a few years before the Fuse invasion! And he's super cute!"

"Then there's Tiffany Triple Threat!" said Blossom "A super girl with powers over fire, ice and lightning, there was seriously no stopping her when she got mad!" Blossom then looked over to Billy who began to smile while rubbing the back of his head feeling embarrassed "She's also got her eye on Billy" she said with a slight giggle.

"So… she's B-Billy's girlfriend?" asked Teo.

"Heh… y-yep" said Billy feeling embarrassed.

"Next there's Marshal Gant" said Irwin "Cold, calculating and has black magic, he's not very heroic with how he works but he was still a trustworthy member of the team."

"And then there's Yen Hawk" said Buttercup, soon everyone besides Teo looked over to Mandy with a smirk, Teo grew confused as he looked at Mandy who began to glare at them.

"MANDY'S BOYFRIEND!" said everyone besides Teo and Mandy.

"There's NOTHING going on between us you idiots!" shouted Mandy looking really angry, Teo couldn't help but notice her cheeks were blushing slightly.

"You can say what you want but we still think so" said Blossom smirking as she waved her index finger, she then faced Teo "In any case, Yen is a Dark Manipulator. He is capable of manipulating the darkness in people's hearts and can even turn darkness into a physical form to fight with, he is also a master of all forms of kicks-only martial arts!"

"When all four of them put their strengths together…" said Bubbles "They wiped Fuse off the planet and are promised to go down into legends as the worlds greatest heroes."

"But… they disbanded shortly after" said Blossom losing her smile "We've seen at least two of them occasionally, Yen and Tiffany… Lance we hardly see since he travels the world… and we've never seen Marshal since."

"Even still… we hardly need their help" said Mandy "You're all going on about how this stupid clown race could be more powerful than Fuse… can they create clones? Can they kill thousands within seconds? Can they actually be a threat?"

"Have you forgotten how we were restrained by those sword wielding clowns within seconds?" asked Blossom looking quite annoyed.

"**You** were restrained" said Mandy "I on the other hand was actually about to tear them all apart before Teo butted in so rudely."

Teo felt quite upset with that statement, so he immediately went back to sitting on his chair properly keeping quiet. Bubbles noticed this and immediately stood up facing Mandy.

"Hey, don't be like that to Teo!" said Bubbles "He was only trying to help-"

"Its… its ok" mumbled Teo surprising Bubbles.

"Teo?" asked Bubbles sounding confused and concerned.

"See? Now keep quiet" said Mandy. Bubbles soon sat back on her chair "Fuse almost destroyed the entire planet, so far these stupid clowns scared a little island. So what makes you think these clowns are dangerous? Collecting the Wish Stars will be as easy as one, two, three."

"To be honest" said Blossom "I hope she's right actually, two years ago our planet was almost destroyed, I don't think our planet could take another worldwide catastrophe like before."

"I guess…" said Buttercup "But still… something did seem off about those creeps."

"You noticed too huh?" asked Blossom "It almost felt like-"

"Attention everyone" said Computress "We are arriving in Mount Blackhead in exactly 30 seconds, please prepare to disembark."

"Dis… embark?" asked Teo.

"It means to get off the ship since we're close to Mount Blackhead" said Bubbles.

* * *

Mount Blackhead was a huge forest surrounded by many trees far exceeding the heights of the Mango Trees Teo climbed every day, the entire area reminded him so much of the Mango Tree forests from the muddy, grassy grounds to the high-top trees. Right in front of Teo and the gang was a huge fence in a giant circle with an even bigger tree baring purple leaves right in the middle, according to Grim, this is the Kids Next Door Jungle Outpost, and inside was the one who will grant them permission to enter the ruins.

The gang waited outside for at least two minutes until a boy at least Mandy's age arrived to greet them. He was a bald kid with black sunglasses, wore a red sweater with a black biker-like vest over it, black fingerless gloves and wore brown denim shorts and had a pair of big light brown boots.

"Nigel Uno" said Grim.

"Its nice to see you again Grim" said the boy named Nigel "But please, refer to us as our numbers when we are on a mission."

"Very well Numbuh 1" said Grim "I'm certain you know why we are here."

"Indeed, Dexter called me and said you wanted permission to enter the ruins" said Numbuh 1 "To make a deal with a being called a… Jeston?" He had a bit of doubt to his tone.

"I know it seems hard to believe" said Blossom "But there really are a bunch of bad guys looking like clowns."

"It is a strange world so I'm not too surprised" said Numbuh 1 "But there's one part of that story I don't believe… how did the Jeston get into the ruins? Its completely sealed off, no one can get in."

"Just shut it four-eyes" said Mandy sounding impatient "We don't care how that freak got in, all we need is you guys to open it! Now will you or not?"

"Tch" was all Numbuh 1 said when he noticed Mandy, looking as if he was sick to his stomach just seeing her, he soon spoke again "Actually I cannot"

"Why not?" asked Bubbles.

"Didn't Dexter told you the gravity of the situation?" asked Buttercup

"He did of course" said Numbuh 1 "While the KND guard the ruins, we don't actually have the authority or ability to open it ourselves. That belongs to one of the residents we keep safe in the outpost."

"So we need his permission?" asked Grim

"Yes" said Numbuh 1 "Naturally I will allow you to enter to speak with him" Numbuh 1 then faces Mandy "But I'm afraid Mandy is forbidden to enter our outpost, not after what she did to us!"

"You really think you can keep me out?" asked Mandy as she glared towards Numbuh 1.

"Every KND member is ordered to attack you without warning if you enter any of our outposts" said Numbuh 1 "The rest of you are welcome to enter and speak with the owner of the ruins."

"Why doesn't he just come out?" asked Mandy.

"He is a hermit of sorts, he refuses to leave the outpost" said Numbuh 1 "So if you want permission to enter the ruins, please stay here Mandy and don't cause trouble."

Mandy simply sighs "Fine, but I'll be barging in and getting things done if its not done in ten minutes"

Irwin gently grabs Mandy's right hand trying to look romantic "Don't worry Mandy, I can keep you company if you like"

Mandy's reply was grabbing Irwin's wrist with the hand he took and throwing him over everyone else hitting the outpost door "No thanks" Mandy said calmly. Everyone looked at Mandy surprised, but then they faced Numbuh 1.

"The hermit should be at the edge of the outpost" said Numbuh 1, he then takes out a remote control and presses the button making the outpost doors open, Irwin then got up and patted the dust off his shirt.

Everyone besides Mandy walked towards the entrance, but they soon stopped and looked behind them to look towards Mandy, she was confused at first until she looked down to see Teo was next to her, not walking at all

"Um… aren't you coming?" asked Blossom.

"I uh… I-if its alright… I'll stay with… Mandy" said Teo shyly. Mandy raised an eyebrow at Teo. "I-I mean… I won't… be of use in the… outpost"

"C'mon Teo" said Irwin "If I wasn't allowed to stay with her then surely-"

"I don't mind" said Mandy, surprising everyone "Hey, the kid's quiet and doesn't annoy me. Unlike the rest of you"

"Well… surely you would like to come in since this does concern your friends from that island" said Grim.

"The… ruins aren't in the Outpost are they?" asked Teo.

"Well no but-" soon Grim stops himself "Well alright fine, guess it really doesn't matter how many go in to get the permit since the big problem is in the ruins itself"

With that, the gang entered the Outpost without Teo or Mandy and the doors soon closed after Numbuh 1 entered.

* * *

In the same dark room where the Jester Lord has his large throne, he walks up to it and sits on it, then a holographic screen appears revealing a new face that could barely be seen due to the lack of light.

"Well then Pieoneer?" asked the Jester Lord "Have there been any activities"

"Apart from those stupid kids insulting me and such, nothing" said the figure known as Pieoneer.

"So Teo is yet to arrive?" asked the Jester Lord.

"Yep, what's so special about this Teo anyway my lord?" asked Pieoneer.

"All you need to know is that this Teo child stole my Wish Star on Mango Island" said the Jester Lord.

"A-all I need to know?" asked Pieoneer "Is there more to him?"

"You and my other Elites are on a need to know basis" said the Jester Lord "And right now that's all you need to know about him"

"Y-yes my lord" said Pieoneer "And very sorry for questioning you"

"Its fine" said Jester Lord "Just don't do it again… but one other thing…"

"Yes my lord?" asked Pieoneer.

"Whether or not Teo surrenders the Wish Star… kill him" said the Jester Lord.

"Really?" asked Pieoneer "Well I'm not sure why but alright… seems a bit of a waste of time to kill a little worthless kid, but orders are orders"

"Good" said the Jester Lord "But be wary, according to both Bombzai and Scimitaar he has some secret skills"

"Secret skills?" asked Pieoneer "L-like what?"

"Like I said" said the Jester Lord "You are on a need to know basis. Just target him the most and don't hold back"

"Bu… alright my lord" said Pieoneer with a bit of doubt in his tone "I'll ensure this performance will be the boy's last"

"Good" said the Jester Lord "Now I am done speaking with you, ensure this child's death and the retrieval of the two Wish Stars"

"Yes my lord" said Pieoneer. And with that, the holographic screen disappeared.

* * *

The Kids Next Door Outpost looked bigger on the inside, there were several wooden cabins and training activities, it almost felt like a school camp site. Right in the centre of it all was a giant purple tree with a face with brighter purple leaves which towered far over the other trees like an elder of sorts. This tree was known as the Magic Tree, it used to have the power to grant wishes until one day Grim was forced to remove that magic from him to protect the Outpost from intruders as well as to avoid any selfish wishes, Mandy never forgave him for that. The gang simply walked past the tree as he watched them go by through the corner of his eyes.

There at the far end was the hermit Numbuh 1 called him. He was a late 60s man with a large stomach but skinny arms and legs, he wore a white sweater vest with long sleeves and yellow plaid trousers and big orange boots, he finally had a strange hairstyle, a red Mohawk on top of short white hair. This man was throwing some seeds down to the ground to feed his pet chickens, in a sense, this old man somewhat resembled a rooster.

"Ladies and Gentleman" said Numbuh 1 "Meet the hermit and owner of the Ruins, Old Man Onidorura"

"Oni… doru… ra?" asked Bubble in confusion.

The old man known as Onidorura stood up after picking up a nearby cane with a rooster head on it, his stance also looked somewhat posh or high classed "Indeed, it is a strange name but it is a name I am proud to have. Tell me, what has brought you here?"

"We're sorry to say" said Blossom "But we need permission to enter the Ruins, it is really important that we do"

"I see… please elaborate" asked Onidorura.

"Someone has found a way into the ruins and wants us to make a deal with him" said Buttercup.

"You are not telling me everything" said Onidorura "I wish to know the full details… otherwise I will not allow permission."

"Well… we wanted to keep it a secret because its really important" said Blossom "But alright, guess we have no choice."

* * *

Mandy and Teo continued to wait outside sitting on logs, both sat on separate ones facing one another since Mandy didn't want anyone to sit next to her, she didn't say it, Teo simply assumed this. Mandy looked towards Teo who looked at the ground rubbing the dust and sand with his feet, he did look bored, but for some reason, Mandy could tell he wasn't bored, but rather he felt distracted or concerned, she also began to wonder if Teo was actually sad. Mandy rubbed her chin wondering these, she did recall seeing the scars on him like he was abused greatly, Mandy then just assumed he's all depressed and such just because he was bullied, plus a girl he really liked was captured, makes sense.

Mandy suddenly saw something around Teo, she began to focus, nothing much, so she leaned forward and focused all her vision into Teo, almost to the point where everything was black, she began to see a glowing blue aura with lightning coming out of him, similar to that attack he unleashed earlier. But soon she began to see Teo's body being slowly replaced with a silhouette of the same shape and structure, but made of blue fire. Mandy's eyes soon widened feeling surprised, the fiery silhouette generating blue lightning felt as if it had power, so much power, even greater power than Mandy could have ever imagined. Mandy soon shook her head feeling light headed, she looked again to see Teo was normal once more, no fire or lightning. Mandy soon sighed feeling confused about all this.

"_Teo… what exactly are you? Are you truly… a monster?" _Mandy thought.

* * *

Back to the others who had finishing explaining everything to Onidorura, he just stood there rubbing his chin as one of the chickens was pecking his boot since a few seeds were on it.

"I see" said Onidorura "So that is your reason."

"Every word is true" said Blossom.

"So can we please enter the ruins?" asked Billy.

"I'm afraid it is not so simple" said Onidorura "As a member of the Zodian Guardians of the Wish Stars, it is my duty is to keep the temple closed and make sure the Wish Star is never stolen."

"But that's the problem" said Bubbles "Like Blossom said, someone HAS entered the temple."

"I am afraid I doubt you" said Onidorura "No one can enter the temple without my permission, but seeing as how you desperately need to enter the temple and take the Wish Star, I will allow you but only under one condition."

"What is it?" asked Blossom.

"Somewhere in the Twisted Forest is a rare type of Rooster called the Golden Crown Rooster" said Onidorura "Its crown can be made into powerful medicines… I simply wish you to find this rooster, remove its crown and bring it back to me, your two friends who are waiting outside can join in too."

"Ha! That'll be easy" said Billy.

"I hope so" said Blossom "We only have two hours until the Jestons kill those kids"

"If your intentions are pure…" said Onidorura "Your task will be completed before your time runs out. Now… better get going."

Everyone nods and walks away from Onidorura except for Numbuh 1 who watches them leave, he then faces Onidorura. "If what they say is true, surely letting them in without any task would be more beneficial" said Numbuh 1.

"I guard the Wish Star with my life, I cannot simply give it away" said Onidorura. "If you are so concerned with this, you can aid them if you like."

"I would... but Mandy is one scary girl" said Numbuh 1.

Onidorura simply sits back down on his chair continuing to feed his chickens.

A little later, the gang left the Outpost meeting up with Teo and Mandy. "So what's the news?" asked Mandy.

"Onidorura, the hermit… will only give us permission if we can get him the crown of a Golden Crown Rooster" said Blossom.

"We can find it in the Twisted Forest" said Grim "Just north from here."

"That stupid hermit is really gonna make us play his game?" asked Mandy sounding annoyed.

"No crown, no permit" said Irwin shrugging his shoulders. "How hard can catching one chicken be?"

"Besides, we're super fast so catching it will be no problem" said Bubbles.

"Well whatever, lets just catch this stupid chicken and get it's crown" said Mandy.

"Sure… me and the girls will meet up with you" said Blossom. With that, she, Bubbles and Buttercup began to float up and they began to fly north.

"Well if those girls are gonna do everything for us, my wishes will definitely come soon" said Mandy with a faint smirk.

"I doubt the girls will have an easy time… the Zodian Guardians are known to be very tricky when it comes to their tasks" said Grim. "We better go too."

With that, Teo, Billy, Mandy, Grim and Irwin began to walk north past the Outpost.

* * *

30 minutes later, the gang continued their walk, the trees of the forest began to look warped and some looked as if they were twisted, no doubt this was the Twisted Forest mentioned by Onidorura. So far their walk was completely silent, Billy soon turned his head to look behind him seeing Mandy and Teo whom had not noticed him yet, what surprised Billy was that they were both holding hands, but Mandy looked completely oblivious to all this, that or she knew but kept her typical emotionless look, either way Billy found it surprising she would be holding someone's hand, especially since she would hardly do it to her own parents when she was a toddler. Billy gave off a small smirk seeing how cute it looked, Mandy looked like a big sister to Teo.

Mandy looked ahead seeing Grim, she then noticed Billy quickly walking up to Grim and whispered something. Grim and Billy look behind them facing Mandy, then they turn around looking as if they were sniggering. "Something funny?" asked Mandy in an annoyed tone thinking they were mocking her.

"N-nothing" sniggered Grim.

"Yeah, just a small joke I told Grim" said Billy.

"Oh really?" asked Mandy "Then humour me, what was so funny that it had to make you turn and look at me?"

Irwin faced Mandy noticing her holding hands with Teo, he immediately got upset "Oh come on! You won't hold hands with me but you'll hold hands with a little kid you met this morning!?"

Mandy raised an eyebrow and looked down to Teo who had quickly let go of her hand hoping not to be noticed, but he was. She then looked at Irwin seeing his annoyed face, Mandy then smirked, knowing she can mess with him easily using Teo. _"Guess I can have a little fun with him" _Mandy thought with a bit of a devilish smirk. Surprisingly, Mandy then picked up Teo and placed him on her shoulders making Irwin even more upset "Well he is a lot better than you in every way" she said.

"OH COME ON!" screamed Irwin.

Billy and Grim looked behind them again seeing Mandy's little scheme, "Who'd thought Mandy had a sense of humour, a pretty mean sense of humour but a sense of humour none the less" whispered Grim.

"I'm surprised she didn't hit Teo for holding her hand" whispered Billy.

"It does look cute how Mandy's acting like a big sister though" whispered Grim.

They all looked ahead to see something they didn't expect. It was the Powerpuff Girls, but not in their best conditions. Blossom was hung over a thick tree branch, Bubbles was stuck halfway inside a hollow log so only her legs could be seen and Buttercup was also stuck through a thick tree like she tried to ram through it.

"What happened to you?" asked Grim

"That… Golden Crown Rooster… got the better of all of us" mumbled Blossom feeling very embarrassed.

"Guess we should rename you three to the Powerpuff Losers" said Mandy as she placed down Teo.

"If you think you're so much better then YOU catch it!" yelled Blossom, she then slowly got off the branch getting her strength back.

"Fine, I'm sure I can catch a stupid chicken without humiliating myself" said Mandy.

"Well there it is!" said Blossom pointing southeast, they all look in that direction to see a large rooster with a golden crown that was glittering. "Go get it then!"

Mandy simply scoffs at Blossom and faces the rooster, she just took one step and the rooster immediately ran off lightning fast leaving a golden glittering trail. Mandy simply had a dumbstruck face seeing such uncanny speed from a rooster, she turns to see the smirking Blossom.

"Well?" asked Blossom.

"Keep your mouth shut if you want to keep it!" demanded Mandy. She then began to run forward looking for the rooster.

"Looks like this task will be trickier than I thought" said Grim.

"Don't worry Mandy! I'll help you!" shouted Irwin as he ran off chasing after the rooster also, though more than likely he was chasing after Mandy instead.

"Well… guess we better help too" said Billy. With that, he, Grim and Teo ran of leaving Blossom behind to let her help Bubbles and Buttercup out of their predicaments.

"Think they'll catch it?" asked Buttercup.

"Sadly I hope so" said Blossom as she grabbed Buttercup's arms and began to pull "We need that permit, I really don't that smart-ass Mandy to get it but at this point we really cannot be picky as to who catches that rooster."

* * *

Billy, Grim and Teo were much deeper into the Twisted Forest, Grim and Billy looked on the ground while Teo was on a tree branch getting a Semi-Birdseye View.

"We've been looking for at least ten minutes now" said Grim.

"How long do we have left?" asked Billy.

"I'd say one hour and twenty minutes" said Grim. "We SHOULD make it in time but… the Twisted Forest is like a maze… even if you walk in a complete straight line you'll find yourself back at the start."

"This place DOES seem familiar" said Billy "Like we have been here before."

"And to think the Fearsome Four had no problem with this place" said Grim "Then again they never entered the Really Twisted Forest west of here."

"Look!" said Teo pointing northwest towards a large pit "I see something!"

Billy and Grim immediately run northwest towards the pit as Teo jumped and landed on Teo's back, luckily he was as light as a feather so Billy wasn't weighed down or stumbled. As the three arrived at the pit, there they saw Mandy in the pit which was filled up to her waist in mud, she simply had her arms crossed looking frustrated.

"Mandy?" called Grim making her turn behind her seeing Grim, Billy and Teo, though she couldn't turn all the way.

"This is no time for a mud bath" said Billy "Where's the chicken?"

"He… he got…" Mandy started to mumble, as if she was embarrassed to talk.

"Did… did you fall in… trying to catch the rooster?" asked Teo.

"I…" Mandy remained quiet as she turned away from them.

"What?" asked Billy.

Mandy then turned back to them looking angry "That stupid rooster lured me near the pit and tripped me up making me fall in! There! Happy!?"

"Yep" said Billy with a big grin.

"Where's Irwin?" asked Teo. "Wasn't he behind you?"

"He went to get a vine to pull me out" said Mandy feeling annoyed "Even though I specifically told him three or four times to catch that rooster, but no… he wanted to save his _'precious princess'_"

Just then, Irwin arrived with a very long vine he had around his left shoulder "Here I am my princess, no need to worry!" He then threw the vine down holding onto one end, Mandy caught the side thrown to her, though she didn't want Irwin to help her, she really wanted to get out of the mud more. "Do you have a good grip on it?"

"I'll have a good grip on your neck if you don't pull!" said Mandy answering his obvious question.

"Y-yes ma'am" said Irwin as he began to pull the vine, but no matter how hard he pulled he couldn't get Mandy out. Two seconds after he slipped and fell into the mud headfirst so only his legs could be seen flailing about.

"My hero" said Mandy sarcastically. She then turns to Grim "You can fly can't you? Get me out of this stupid mud hole!"

"What about the roo-"

"There it is!" said Billy pointing east interrupting Grim, there where Billy pointed was the rooster itself with its glittering crown, he then began to chase after it.

"I guess if at least one of us is chasing it…" Grim then faces Teo "Mind helping that idiot out?"

Teo nodded slowly and began to run in Billy's direction while Grim flew just over the mud pit and grabbed Mandy's arms trying to pull her out, and Irwin soon after.

* * *

Two minutes later, Billy constantly jumped and tackled the ground trying to catch the rooster, but all he really did was hit trees and scrapped his body across the ground getting scratches and bruises. Teo was too nervous to jump in and help, being afraid of getting hurt by Billy's tackling or just getting in the way I general.

"C'mere Chicky Chicky!" shouted Billy after making one more jump, but he landed directly into another tree as the rooster dashed away, Billy got his pink nose stuck in a squirrel hole and was trying to pull it out, but he was stuck good.

Teo looked carefully, he knew Billy couldn't do it, but he also thought he couldn't do it either. With that, memories began to come to him so suddenly about his time when he got to go round Bowla's house.

* * *

"_Teo, why is it you never do anything around other people unless asked to? When we all had to try and get that ball out of that tree, you stood by and did nothing."_

"_I'm afraid I might get in their way Bowla. After all… Mike said I'm a useless freak… and… he's right, I can never seem to do anything right."_

"_Don't listen to that bucktoothed moron, you're more than useless. In fact I believe you could have the potential to be a super hero."_

"_A… super hero?"_

"_Yeah… you're better than everyone on this stupid island! I mean… you might even be better than me when it comes to… well... being you."_

"_But… your dad is a mafia boss who controls several towns right? And you can breathe fire, you burnt down a lot of forests trying to get Mike."_

"_And what can you do huh?"_

"_I…"_

"_Lemme answer that for you. You can do whatever you want."_

"_Huh?"_

"_Open your eyes Teo, first of all you're a heck of a lot braver than anyone else, heck you're not even afraid of those big spiders. Second, you have everything a cat can do, you could've climbed up that tree and knocked the ball down, there was also that time when my daddy needed that huge metal block broken down, your tail would've smashed it easily since that tail of yours seems to be indestructible, and don't get me started on your super blast attack OR your eye-power!"_

"_I… I know but-"_

"_Teo, the point is… you need to stop thinking you're useless when you have a lot of potential, all of the orphans couldn't get that ball down when you could've easily… Teo… you… you can't let so much power go to waste, it doesn't matter if you'll get in the way, at least you're showing them you are better than them. What happens if something really bad has happened and everyone on the island couldn't fix it but you, would you wait for someone to ask you? As if, everyone thinks you're useless and a freak, they wouldn't ask, you need to know when to step in and help everyone, even if they're ungrateful, at least you're showing them you're not useless"_

"_I… um… y-you're right Bowla… but-"_

"_Now Teo… no buts… it doesn't matter what everyone thinks of you, once you start using your ability and show everyone you're not useless, you should feel better about yourself, heck, the islanders might even start to respect you. If not, then… just keep doing what you're capable of and don't ever care what others think of you."_

"_T-thank you Bowla… I'll try my best to use my… my… Cattributes more often"_

"… _Ha ha! Cattributes? Good one! Did you seriously just think of that now?"_

"_Heh… y-yeah."_

"_Well we know you could do well as a comedian if you're still too scared of using your powers"_

* * *

Teo's eyes grew slightly fierce as he faced the rooster, he noticed Billy who had finally been able to get his nose out

"Dang it! That hurt" said Billy, he then faced the rooster but grew confused when Teo walked forward.

"Billy… l-let me handle this… alone" said Teo sounding quite serious but still shy.

"T-Teo?" asked Billy feeling confused and concerned at his sudden change.

Teo then faced Billy showing his fierce eyes going cat-like "Please… I can do this but I can't have anyone get in my way… can you please let me do this alone?"

"Teo? A-alright sure" muttered Billy.

"Thank you" said Teo.

Teo sat on the ground and took off his shoes revealing his white socks, he took those off two showing his bare feet, he placed the socks in his shoes and placed the shoes down next to him, then to Billy's surprise, Teo got into a position using his arms and legs like he was a cat readying to pounce, his tail swishes side to side very quickly, Teo's eyes grew even more cat-like with the irises going very thin, his claws on his hands and feet shown even more and he even opened his mouth slightly revealing a pair of fangs. Billy grew surprised to see all this, Teo always had them but seeing them in action was a different story.

Suddenly Teo leapt forward making the rooster run, Teo then began to dash like a cheetah going incredibly fast, the rooster made several 90 degree turns in an attempt to shake Teo off his trail but Teo made those perfect 90 degree turns also, never losing sight of the rooster. Billy grew amazed at Teo's speed and accuracy, he almost mistook Teo for a real cheetah. But he grew nervous realising that Teo was chasing the rooster towards the Really Twisted Forest, where the true illusions and maze-like features really start to appear. Billy wanted to go in but Teo's requesting him to let him do this alone inclined him to stay put.

"Teo… be careful" muttered Billy growing nervous as Teo and the rooster were completely out of sight.

To be continued


End file.
